Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department

06/02/2026

🚨🎉 50 YEARS OF SERVICE 🎉🚨

The members of Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department would like to invite our community, neighboring fire departments, past members, and friends to join us as we celebrate our 50th Anniversary!

📅 Saturday, June 13
⏰ 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Join us for a day of fellowship, memories, and celebration as we recognize 50 years of dedicated service to our community.

🎖️ Anniversary Ceremony – 11:00 AM
🎟️ Raffle Drawing – 1:30 PM

Whether you’ve served with us, supported us, or simply want to help celebrate this milestone, we would be honored to have you with us.

Thank you to our community for your continued support over the past 50 years. We look forward to celebrating with everyone as we honor our history and look ahead to the future!

🚒 Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department
“50 Years of Service, Dedication, and Community”

04/28/2026

The statewide burn ban remains in effect until further notice despite weekend rain in some areas. Persistent dry weather and increasing rainfall deficits from the last several months have left most of the state needing 10 inches of rain or more.

“While the rainfall we received over the weekend was a welcome sight, it offered little to no relief from widespread drought conditions while being nowhere near enough to reduce our wildfire risk,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “Even the areas that received the heaviest amount of rain will quickly dry out from the sunshine and warmer temperatures. Until we get some additional rain and see more green-up in our forests, holding the burn ban in place statewide is the best option right now.”

While green-up and leaf-out are progressing at normal rate, low soil moisture, dry surface fuels and persistent low humidity are contributing to wildfire activity. For Western North Carolina, excessive forest fuels from Hurricane Helene are more available now than they were in 2025, low water levels in coastal areas have helped produce intense fire behavior where ground fire will likely be a long-term issue, and the Piedmont experienced 87 new wildfire starts over the weekend alone. Extended attack and mop-up efforts will be taxing and long-winded until drought conditions improve.

Read news release: https://bit.ly/497dNht

04/19/2026

🔥🚒 THANK YOU, COMMUNITY! 🚒🔥

Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone who came out and supported our Annual BBQ yesterday! Your continued support means everything to our department and helps us continue serving and protecting our community.

We are incredibly grateful to:
• Everyone who purchased BBQ plates
• Our dedicated volunteers who worked tirelessly preparing and serving food
• Community members who helped spread the word
• Local supporters and businesses who continue to stand behind us

Because of you, yesterday was a huge success! Your support helps us with training, equipment, and continuing to provide the best service possible to our community.

We truly live in a special community, and we are honored to serve each and every one of you.

From all of us at Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department — Thank You!

04/18/2026

🚨🚒Today is the day, come out and join us for for the best BBQ around. We start selling at 11 until we sell out.🚒🚨

04/14/2026

🚨 No Lunch Plans This Saturday? We’ve Got You Covered! 🔥🍽️

If you haven’t made lunch plans yet for Saturday, April 18th, come on out and support your local community at the Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department Annual BBQ Lunch!

🚨🔥 Join Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department and the Community by attending our annual BBQ Pork and BBQ Chicken Lunch, starting at 11 AM and going until sold out.

💲 Just $10.00 gets you some of the best BBQ Pork or Chicken in town!
💳 We are also accepting credit cards at the station.

🚒🔥 RAFFLE ALERT!
We are also having a raffle this year — take a look below and message us here if you would like to purchase tickets.
📱 Now accepting Venmo for raffle tickets
🎉 Drawing Date: June 13, 2026 during our 50th Year Anniversary Celebration.

All proceeds from this fundraiser directly benefit the Back Swamp community and surrounding areas by supporting ongoing operations and helping us continue to serve you when you need us most.

📍 Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department
2957 Catherine Lake Rd
Richlands, NC 28574

📞 Questions? Call Station 1: (910) 324-5458

Come hungry, bring your family, and help support your local volunteers! 🚒🔥

04/05/2026

🚒 Training for the Unexpected — Serving Our Community Better 🚜

You may have noticed a full parking lot at Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department. Our members along with Richlands Volunteer Fire Department, Rhodestown Volunteer Fire Department, Nine Mile Volunteer Fire Department, Camp Lejeune Fire & Emergency Services, Onslow County Emergency Services, Half Moon Volunteer Fire Department Inc. Jacksonville Fire Department and Surf City Fire Department, recently participated in a Machinery & Agricultural Rescue Class hosted by Mr Bobby Gene with Eastern NC Rescue.

This specialized training helped familiarize responders with agricultural equipment and potential emergencies that our volunteers may encounter right here in our local area. Our community is built on strong farming roots and we proudly support our local farmers. Being prepared for these types of emergencies ensures we can respond quickly, safely, and effectively when it matters most. 🌾🚜

We would also like to extend a huge thank you to:
• Richlands Farms
• M&B Turkeys

Thank you for allowing us to utilize your farms and equipment to make this hands-on training possible.

Another big thank you to:
🍕 Domino's Pizza
🥪 Jersey Mike's Subs

for providing lunch during both Saturdays of training — your support kept our crews fueled and ready to learn!

Lastly, thank you to 360 Smoke Chasers CO. for capturing some awesome photos of the training in action. 📸

We are proud to continuously train, grow, and prepare — all in an effort to better serve and protect our community.

Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department
Committed to Training. Committed to Service. Committed to You. 🚒

04/03/2026

🚨🔥🔥T-15 days!!!!!! Please join Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department and the Community by attending our annual BBQ Pork and BBQ Chicken lunch, Saturday April 18th starting at 11 AM and going until sold out. $10.00 buys you the best BBQ Pork or Chicken in town! We are also accepting credit cards at the station.

🚒🔥We are also having A raffle this year, take a look below and message us here if you would like to buy any tickets. We are now also accepting Venmo. The drawing will be June 13th 2026 at our 50th year anniversary! More details to come.🔥🚒

All proceeds from this fundraiser will benefit the community of Back Swamp and its surrounding areas by providing funds to support on going operations. Back Swamp VFD is located at 2957 Catherine Lake Rd, Richlands, NC 28574. For more information call Back Swamp Station 1 (910)-324-5458.🔥🔥

03/28/2026

Please adhere to the warnings! The weather is not good for burning.

Effective 8AM Sunday, March 29, 2026 Onslow County will implement a County Burn Ban until further notice due to increased fire risk. The burn ban for Onslow County does not allow for any open burning within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling until conditions improve.

The North Carolina Forest Service issued a statewide burn ban effective 6PM March 28, 2026 but it does not apply to fires started within 100 feet of an occupied dwelling. Onslow County implemented its local burn ban in cooperation with the State of North Carolina to reduce the risk of wildfires starting and spreading.

Open burning includes burning leaves, branches, or other plant material. In all cases burning trash, lumber, tires, newspaper, plastics, or other nonnegative material is illegal. The only exception to the County wide burn ban is for the use of outdoor cooking and warmth purposes.

03/28/2026

Effective Saturday, March 28 at 8 a.m., the National Weather Service has issued a ** 🚩🚩RED FLAG WARNING🚩🚩** for some North Carolina counties. For counties that aren’t under a red flag, fire danger is still critical. Review weather alerts for North Carolina at weather.gov.

A red flag warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures will create dangerous fire behavior.

While open burning is permitted during a red flag, it is NOT advised. Please postpone ALL outdoor burning. If there was ever a time to show you can follow instructions the first time they are given, it’s now.

Careless debris burning is the leading cause of wildfires in North Carolina, and you are our best defense against wildfire. For wildfire readiness and prevention tips: preventwildfirenc.org

12/21/2025

🎄 Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department Christmas Party 2025 🎄

Last night, our members gathered for our annual Christmas party — a night filled with great food, laughter, and fellowship. It was a well-deserved opportunity to celebrate another year of service, dedication, and brotherhood/sisterhood within our department.

We’d like to extend a huge congratulations to our award recipients:
🏆 Rookie of the Year
🔥 Firefighter of the Year
🚒 Officer of the Year
🎖️ And all those recognized with Service Awards for their continued commitment to our department and community.

To all of our hardworking volunteers — thank you. This year has come with its share of challenges, especially with the lack of full support from county administration, but our members never wavered. Through your dedication, teamwork, and professionalism, Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department proudly maintained an ISO Grade 4, logged over 4,200 hours of training, and handled a 19% increase in call volume in 2025.

We are incredibly proud of our department and grateful for the continued support from our families and community. Together, we stand strong and remain committed to protecting and serving.

From all of us at Back Swamp Volunteer Fire Department, we wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a safe, Happy New Year! 🎅🚒❤️