NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. – Newton County Fire Rescue responded to 81 calls emergency calls over the first three days of 2018.  Deputy Chief Brad Stapp said firefighters have experienced a heavier than normal call volume since Christmas, including structure fires, motor vehicle accidents and a water rescue.

On Dec. 29, firefighters responded to a house fire at 175 Sara Drive in Covington. Stapp said the fire started in the garage and extended into the house, where firefighters were able to stop it from spreading further. Two adults at home asleep at the time were able to escape unharmed.

On New Year’s Eve, firefighters were called out to locate and assist two stranded boaters on Lake Jackson. According to NCFS, two hunters lost power while duck hunting and were unable to make it back to shore. Firefighters deployed the DCFS rescue boat, located the pair and towed them safely to shore.

On Jan. 2, firefighters arrived at a scene on Parr Road to find a fully involved fire in a detached garage. According to reports, they were able to extinguish the fire before it spread to the house. Again, there were no injuries reported.

NCFR also responded out of the county Dec. 30 to help Jasper County Fire with a house fire inside the Turtle Cove subdivision.