Hays County Fire Marshal sees more inspection requests, needs extra staff

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) --- Development after development continues to set up shop in Hays County, and it's keeping the Fire Marshal's Office busy with inspections.

So much so, the office needs more staff.

The team consists of two full-time inspectors, including Fire Marshal Steve Seddig. Seddig said they just hired a fire investigator.

"He handles all of our investigation related business," Seddig said. "Evidence collection, evidence storage, evidence destruction, and then helping with reporting in our records management system."

But Seddig said that's not enough people for their demand, so they also tap into part-time inspectors from local Emergency Service Districts.

"ESDs participate quite a bit and help us on a part time basis," Seddig said. "So we do utilize part time staff to kind of fill the gaps."

How much of an increase?

Seddig said the following are requests for fire inspections:

• 2021: 117 inspections (August through December 2021)
• 2022: 289 inspections
• 2023: 550 inspections
• 2024: 389 inspections to date

A majority of those inspections are development-related, according to Seddig.

"If there's an immediate proactive situation where we need to get involved, health and safety or something like that, we do get involved," Seddig said. "But as far as annual inspections or anything like that, we're at a staff level and at a demand level with development that we just it's, it's nearly impossible right now, with our staff."

With how things are now, Seddig said they're working to add more staff in the future.

"I think what we definitely are requesting another inspector on the next budget year," Seddig said.