Where there's smoke, there's Fire Chief Russell Hobbs

In late September of 2021, Russell Hobbs took on a new role as Fire Chief at Tri-County Fire Protection District in Richland. However, there is nothing new about the fire service for Hobbs who, as a youngster, played fireman by wearing the seemingly huge helmet of his firefighter father, Rick Hobbs. "I was raised around the firehouse, so I really didn't know anything different. That was just normal for me to ride with my dad to fire calls and hang out at the fire station," Hobbs said. The senior Hobbs started his career in 1980, becoming Fire Chief for the Richland Fire Department in 1983 and his son began life in 1985. Consequently, there has never been a time when Russell Hobbs did not have a firefighter in his family. The Tri-County Fire Protection District was formed in 1991, and Rick Hobbs was "a dual hat" who served as Fire Chief for both departments and later as a Battalion Chief for the Waynesville Rural Fire Protection District. For more on tis story see the LCR.