Church Hill Rescue Squad

10/16/2026

‼️ATTENTION LOCAL AND REGIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCIES AND MEMBERS‼️

Hawkins County Rescue Squad and Church Hill Rescue Squad invites each of you to a Search and Rescue Operations Training and Exercise coming up on Saturday, November 7th. Please see the below flyer that contains information about the training offering along with how to register. This training is being offered free to charge. Only one registration per agency or group attending. Deadline to register if Friday, October 30th.

Please feel free to share with any public safety agency or member!

For additional information, please contact Chief Tim Coup at [email protected]

10/08/2026

We wanted to share part of our week so far at the AMPWDA Fall Seminar where K-9 Axel got Certified in SAR Man Trailing. We have one more day of learning and training and we already can’t wait for next year!

10/08/2026

Sharing for our neighboring K-9 agency.

10/08/2026

🐾🚨 BREAKING NEWS: THE NOSE KNOWS… AND NOW IT'S CERTIFIED! 🚨🐾

We are incredibly proud to share some exciting news from the AMPWDA Fall Seminar!

So far this week, Captain Light and K9 Axel have been putting in the work, training and testing in Search & Rescue Man Trailing — and we are thrilled to announce that Church Hill Rescue Squad now has its certified SAR Man Trailing K9 team! 🎉🐕‍🦺

This is a huge milestone for our agency and another major step forward in strengthening the Search & Rescue capabilities we can provide to our community and surrounding areas.

We want to recognize Captain Light, Axel’s handler, and K9 Axel for the countless hours of training, dedication, patience, and hard work that went into reaching this goal. Achievements like this don’t happen overnight, and we could not be more proud of this team!

We would also like to extend a HUGE thank you to Rio Demers and Brad Fields for the countless hours, guidance, training, and support they have contributed to making this day possible. Your investment in Captain Light and K9 Axel has played an important part in reaching this milestone, and we are extremely grateful!

Please join us in congratulating Captain Light & K9 Axel — Church Hill Rescue Squad’s Search & Rescue Man Trailing K9 team! 🐾

The work doesn’t stop here — this is just the beginning!

10/07/2026

Sharing this opportunity to help out our counterparts at HCRS!

Hawkins County Rescue Squad is actively welcoming sponsors for a Rope Rescue Training Tower that will be constructed at our station located at 955 East McKinney Avenue in Rogersville. Please see the attached flyer for sponsorship opportunities.

10/03/2026

Today, members of the Church Hill Rescue Squad attended the 2026 Tennessee Association of Rescue Squads Memorial Service, where we joined rescue squads from across the state in remembering those who dedicated their lives to serving others.

This year, Rescue Technicians Brandon Clawson and Richard Britton were honored and remembered for their many years of service to the Church Hill Rescue Squad and our community.

Richard was a volunteer EMT with the Church Hill Rescue Squad and served this organization in various leadership roles throughout many years of dedicated service.

Brandon served as a paramedic for 20 years and was a lifetime member of both the Carters Valley Volunteer Fire Department and the Church Hill Rescue Squad.

Both Brandon and Richard passed away in 2025, leaving behind legacies of service, leadership, and commitment that continue to have an impact on our organization and the communities they served.

We are grateful for the opportunity to honor their memory alongside our brothers and sisters in rescue organizations from across Tennessee.

Their service will never be forgotten.

https://churchhillrescuesquad.org/news/rescue-technicians-honored-at-tars-memorial/

10/02/2026

09/26/2026

🚨 JOIN THE TEAM — VOLUNTEERS WANTED! 🚨

Church Hill Rescue Squad is looking for dedicated people who want to serve their community, learn new skills, and become part of a team that responds when others need help most.

Our members train and respond to all forms of technical rescue, including vehicle extrication, swiftwater rescue, rope rescue, confined space, structural collapse, trench rescue, cave rescue, medical first response, and more.

No prior experience is required. We provide training opportunities and help new members develop the knowledge and hands-on skills needed to serve safely and effectively. Whether you are interested in emergency response, medical operations, technical rescue, training, or supporting the team behind the scenes, there may be a place for you.

If you have ever thought about volunteering in emergency services, now is a great time to get involved.

📩 Interested in joining or learning more?
Message the Church Hill Rescue Squad on Facebook or email [email protected].

Serve your community. Build your skills. Be part of the team.

09/22/2026

Church Hill Rescue Squad asks everyone to please keep the members of the Kingsport Fire Department and Sullivan County EMS who were struck while working an emergency scene in your thoughts and prayers, along with their families, coworkers, and departments.

Incidents like this hit especially close to home for those of us in emergency services. Every time our members step out of an apparatus along a roadway, there is a very real danger from passing traffic. It is something we worry about on every roadside call.

We cannot stress this enough:

PLEASE SLOW DOWN AND MOVE OVER when approaching emergency vehicles with their lights activated.

Those flashing lights aren’t just there to get your attention—they are warning you that firefighters, EMS personnel, law enforcement officers, rescue personnel, tow operators, or others may be working just feet away from moving traffic.

A few seconds of slowing down and moving over can make the difference between everyone going home safely and a tragedy that changes lives forever.

From all of us at Church Hill Rescue Squad, our thoughts and prayers are with our brothers and sisters at Kingsport Fire Department and Sullivan County EMS. We are praying for healing, strength, and a full recovery for everyone involved.

🙏 Please protect those who are out there protecting and serving you. Slow down. Move over. Give us room to work. 🚒🚑🚓

At approximately 10:00 p.m. last night, members of the Kingsport Fire Department were operating on Interstate 26 Westbound at the scene of a motor vehicle accident when a secondary crash occurred behind the original incident.

Kingsport firefighters and personnel from Sullivan County EMS immediately went to the secondary crash to check for injuries and provide assistance. While emergency personnel were loading a patient into an ambulance, a vehicle traveling westbound struck three Kingsport firefighters and one Sullivan County EMS EMT, injuring all four emergency responders.

All four personnel were transported to Johnson City Medical Center for evaluation and treatment. Two have since been treated and released. Two remain hospitalized this morning with injuries that are considered non-life-threatening.

We are extremely thankful that the injuries sustained by our firefighters and our partner from Sullivan County EMS were not more serious. Our thoughts and prayers remain with all four responders, their families, and everyone involved in this incident as they recover.

This incident is also a sobering reminder of the dangers firefighters, EMS personnel, law enforcement officers, tow operators, and highway workers face while operating along our roadways. We ask every driver to slow down, move over, remain alert, and give emergency personnel the space they need to safely perform their duties.

We appreciate the concern and prayers that have already been expressed for our personnel and our partners at Sullivan County EMS. We ask that you continue to keep everyone involved in your thoughts and prayers.

Fire Chief Jerry DeBerry
Kingsport Fire Department