Thanks to upgrades made by the Campground Water Association, residents in the Woodson Ridge and Campground areas could see a drop in their fire insurance.

Lafayette County Fire Coordinator Wes Anderson told the Lafayette County Board of Supervisors Monday that the homes in those areas will be annexed into the Central Fire District which has a 7 rating from the Mississippi Fire Rating Bureau.

A fire district can receive a rating from 1 to 10 with 10 being the worst rating and 1 being the best.

Currently, those homes have a 10 rating since they were not part of a fire district.

The areas to be annexed into the Central Fire District will run north from Highway 30 at Woodson Ridge Road to the Abbeville Grading District boundary, south from Highway 30 at Campground Road to Highway 6 and then west to the city of Oxford.

About 50 percent of the rating comes from the evaluation of the fire department’s overall efficiency, which includes the adequacy of equipment, sufficient staffing, evaluation of training, existence of automatic aid, and geographic distribution of fire companies.

About 40 percent is based on the water supply — condition and maintenance of hydrants and the amount of available water — in volume and pressure — compared with the amount needed to suppress fires.

Ten percent of the rating comes from communications — 911 system, adequacy of phone lines, operator supervision, staffing and dispatching hardware and software systems.

Homeowners in the new annexed areas could see about a $350 a year savings due to the change in ratings.

When the new fire station No. 17 is built, Tuscan Hills will also be annexed into the Central Fire District.

Anderson said homeowners should check with their insurance agents to see if the change in rating will lower their fire insurance premiums.