The Charles County Board of Fire and Rescue Commissioners held its January 2026 meeting, electing officers, reviewing financial reports and approving requests for emergency vehicle replacements amid discussions on capital projects and ongoing programs for volunteer fire and EMS departments in the county.
Chair Lynn Gilroy, representing the Charles County Volunteer Firemen’s Association, presided over the session with Vice Chair Bill Dear, representing the Charles County Association of Emergency Medical Services. Board members included gubernatorial appointee Natasha Sugar Perry, county commissioner appointee Robert Ansel and County Commissioner Amanda Stewart representing the Charles County Commissioners.
The board received letters from the Charles County Volunteer Firemen’s Association and the Charles County Association of Emergency Medical Services confirming the reappointments of Gilroy and Dear to the executive committee through December 2026. Gilroy was reelected as chair, and Dear as vice chair, both by unanimous vote after nominations closed.
The board approved the minutes from its Dec. 18, 2025, meeting without questions. The Length of Service Awards Program board report for December 2025 was not available, though Dear noted payments had continued and the investment portfolio remained stable.
Letters of information included the Charles County Volunteer Firemen’s Association and EMS Association’s monthly expenditures and escrow account details for December 2025, totaling $73,525.06 across various accounts for coordinators, mobile supply terminals, administrative services, scholarships and vehicle fuel. The board also received quarterly reports on ambulance replacements from Charles County Volunteer Rescue Squad (518) with no updates, and Cobb Island Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad (68) noting a signed contract and queued build.
A letter of intent from Potomac Heights Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad announced plans to replace one ambulance, with specifications to follow in a request letter. The department had relinquished its second ambulance in the previous budget cycle.
The board reviewed a letter of request from Benedict Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad to replace ambulance 58, a 2008 Ford PL Custom unit with 51,695 miles that had exceeded its 10-year life expectancy. The proposed replacement is a 2026 Ford F550 Horton custom ambulance at $393,391, plus a Stryker power load system, power cot stretcher and stair chair at $78,568.82, for a total of $471,959.82. The department holds $538,212.73 in EMS apparatus capital and will incur no debt, with the current unit to be sold and proceeds returned to the account. The membership and board of directors approved the purchase unanimously. The unit is a demonstration model with a six-month projected build time, purchased through the HGAC contract buy program. Chief Russ Lander confirmed details online.
Additional letters of request covered multiple departments. Bryans Road Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad sought to replace ambulance 118, a 2015 Ford F450 PL Custom with 101,680 miles, at $393,391 for a 2026 Ford F550 Horton custom, plus $78,568.82 for the Stryker system, totaling $471,959.82. The department has $566,722.92 in EMS apparatus capital and will sell the current unit.
Dentsville Volunteer EMS Fire and Auxiliary requested a replacement ambulance, a 2013 Ford F450 PL Custom with 87,000 miles, at the same costs totaling $471,959.82. The department holds $492,365.98 in EMS apparatus capital.
Hughesville Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad requested a 40-by-60-foot pole barn building addition at $381,920, funded from $390,174.25 in fire apparatus capital, with no debt. The project addresses storage needs for engine 21, tanker 2 and brush 2, with a 10-week build time. President Robert Jameson and Chief John Clarke confirmed details online, noting it as a permanent structure requiring permits and electrical work.
The board discussed distinctions between permanent and temporary structures under the capital acquisition plan, which requires requests for building modifications or construction. Hughesville’s project was deemed permanent, while a separate letter of information from Dentsville for a $20,000 temporary metal building to house engine tanker 15 during new pole barn construction was accepted as non-tax funded and temporary, with no permits for foundation but required for size, and plans to sell it afterward recouping 75% of costs. President Lee Hayes clarified it would sit on millings with basic electricity and anchors, not attached to the existing building.
Volunteer Coordinator Bill Smith reported the passing of past Chief George Hayden, a lifetime member and past chief at Bel Alton Volunteer Fire Department and charter member at Newburg Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department, with viewing Jan. 21 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Bel Alton fire station. Smith noted the installation of officers banquet on Jan. 16, the start of the General Assembly session, monitoring of fire and EMS legislation and weekly meetings in Annapolis. Five departments—Bryans Road, Cobb Island, Hughesville, La Plata and Tenth District—received U.S. Forestry Service grants for wildland firefighting projects. The cadet program progressed with EMT and fire instructor training, including live fire activities, and seven cadets will compete in Skills USA on Feb. 7 at Hollywood Volunteer Fire Department against Calvert and St. Mary’s counties, with potential advancement to state and national levels.
The board reminded departments of quarterly capital project reports due for Bryans Road (engine 11), Dentsville (pole barn), Indian Head (brush truck engine 94 and command unit 9), Newburg (ambulance 148) and Tenth District (engine 82).
The board prepared an annual attendance report for submission to the county commissioners’ clerk under a 2023 resolution, noting excused absences for job demands, illness or emergencies, with unexcused absences grounds for removal.
The meeting adjourned without further business.
This session reflects ongoing coordination between Charles County government and volunteer fire and EMS organizations to maintain equipment, facilities and training amid budget considerations and legislative monitoring in Southern Maryland.