WR Castle Fire and Rescue


News & Events

Firefighters Respond To Injury Accident:

At 8:07 pm on Monday, February 9, the Paintsville-Johnson County 911 center received a call of an injury accident on US 23 near the Rt. 201 intersection.  W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue, the Johnson Co. Sheriff's Office, Paintsville EMS, First Response Ambulance, and Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement all responded to the call.  Emergency personnel arrived to find a male occupant trapped inside an overturned car situated in the roadway.  Firefighters requested a medical helicopter be sent for the patient and began the process of extricating the injured driver.  Rockhouse Fire & Rescue responded to Highland Elementary School to set up a landing zone for the helicopter. 
Firefighters had to remove both driver's side doors and part of the back seat to remove the patient.  He was extricated in less than ten minutes and transported by First Response to the landing zone, from which he was flown to Cabell-Huntington Hospital for treatment.  Twenty-four firefighters from the two departments responded to the two incidents with three engines and one rescue truck.


FIREFIGHTERS HONOR HUTCHISON FOR 20 YEARS OF SERVICE
 
Bob Hutchison was recently honored by W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue for 20 years of providing assistance to their Apple Festival fundraising booth.  "Mr. Hutchison's donations of bread, condiments, and paper products have reduced our input expenses, greatly improving the booth's profitability," said Chief Paul Burchett.  "Bob's help has allowed us to purchase the lifesaving equipment we need to protect our citizens."
 
"Now that we share in the profits of the booth, Bob's help is boosting our funds as well," said Rockhouse Fire Chief John Thompson.  "Having started out new just six years ago, we've needed a lot of help, and the food booth has provided it."

Hutchinson Recieves Award.

Bob Hutchison is presented an award in recognition of twenty years of service to W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue and Rockhouse Fire & Rescue.  L-R Rockhouse Chief John Thompson, Bob Hutchison, and W.R. Castle Chief Paul Burchett.

A man was injured last night when his pickup overturned on Rt. 40 at the entrance to Cross Creek Subdivision.  Emergency crews were called at 7:48 pm and found the truck had flipped onto its roof in the ditch, trapping the driver inside.  Firefighters from W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue, assisted by Rockhouse and Staffordsville firefighters and Paintsville EMS, were able to quickly extricate the man using hydraulic rescue tools and prepare him for transport to Paul B. Hall Regional Medical Center.  Route 40 was blocked for about an hour while the accident was cleaned up.  The Johnson County Sheriff's Office is investigating the accident

At 5:52 pm on Thursday, September 18, W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue was dispatched to a reported smoke detector activation with smoke visible at the Perry Vanhoose Housing Project at Wittensville.  Units from W.R. Castle and Rockhouse responded to the call.  Upon arrival crews confirmed there was smoke in a first-floor apartment, and firefighters were able to force the apartment door open to investigate.  Inside they found a skillet of food had been left cooking on the stove when the occupant, Peggy Mullins, left home.  The skillet was taken outside, the apartment was cleared of smoke, and the residence was turned back over to the occupant and apartment staff.  Firefighters cleared the scene at 6:30 pm.  Three engines and two tankers responded to the call, with about 15 firefighters.  No one was hurt and there was minimal property damage.



.At 11:29 am on Sunday, September 21, firefighters with W.R. Castle Fire & Rescue were dispatched to a report of a structure fire on the Right Fork of Williams Branch at Wittensville.  Chief Paul Burchett arrived at 11:35 and reported heavy fire from a camper and adjacent home.  Crews from Rockhouse, River, and Thealka were requested for tankers, and EMS crews from First Response provided rehab and medical care for exhausted firefighters.  It took 25 firefighters to bring the blaze under control.  The fire also spread to an adjacent hillside, and later damaged a neighbor's lawn building before firefighters extinguished it.  The Kentucky Division of Forestry responded to the brush fire.
 
The home belonged to Clarence Meadows and Debbie Wallen.  About half the home was destroyed, with smoke and fire damage to the rest.  No one was injured.  Firefighters cleared the scene at 3:49 pm.  Kentucky State Police are expected to be on the scene today to investigate.