Repeated surveys have shown that tranquility and peace of mind rank very high on the list of reasons people choose Big Canoe for their residence. Big Canoe has an excellent Public Safety Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Bill Bates.
The major responsibilities in Public Safety are Fire Protection, Emergency Medical Services, and Security, which includes patrols and the automated gate system. Big Canoe’s Fire Protection is first-rate. We have seven fire stations on the property, with six engines. The main fire station is manned around the clock with at least one fireman and one EMS representative, and all are trained and State certified. The full-time staff is augmented by trained volunteers who live all over Big Canoe and are often the first on the scene when a call comes in.
Big Canoe has earned a Class 4 ISO rating, and that puts us in the top ten percent of all departments rated by the ISO all over the country. We have automatic aid response agreements with both the Dawson and Pickens County Fire Departments. Because of our beautiful, natural environment, fire safety is, and has to be, important to us!
Big Canoe is very proud of our Emergency Medical Services team. We have a State certified Basic Life Support Vehicle stationed in Wolfscratch Village, and manned 24/7 by at least one emergency medical technician or paramedic. When needed, our ambulance services are provided by Dawson and Pickens Counties. We can provide emergency air ambulance service by helicopter.
Security is provided by a roving patrol unit; at least one of these is on duty at all times. These units are equipped with radar for enforced traffic control. We also have automatic security cameras installed throughout the property; video images are recorded and monitored regularly. Our gate system is automated with entry and exit controlled by transponders inside our vehicles. The gates are also manned to assist visitors, and a bar code scanner system is employed for frequent guests and contractors. The system works well—by the end of the year we will have issued almost 100,000 guest passes!
