BATTLE CREEK, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Battle Creek is receiving national recognition in a newly released research report detailing the top cities for firefighters.
Advisor Smith recently released how 311 fire departments across the country rank in terms of their community’s annual salary, cost of living, and location. Battle Creek ranked number 20 on the list, and in the small city category it ranked 5th.
A majority of the top cities in the study were either small or midsized cities. Battle Creek stood out to the insurance researcher because of solid support from the community, and additional resources provided to the department.
Department leaders say the increased number of training hours and the financial windfall of grant money is making them a more effective force, even as the city grapples with a high number of abandoned property fires.
The Battle Creek Fire Department has put additional effort into its community risk reduction program, even offering to install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors for free to city residents.
