A fire department or fire brigade, also known as a fire company, fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression services as well as other rescue services.
A volunteer fire department (VFD) is a fire department of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction. Volunteer and retained (on-call) firefighters are expected to be on call to respond to emergency calls for long periods of time, and are summoned to the fire station when their services are needed. They are also expected to attend other non-emergency duties as well.
Fire police are fire department members who, based upon their jurisdictional authority, receive sworn police powers, special training, and support firefighting efforts at emergency incidents. In addition to securing firefighting equipment, incident and fire scenes, and the station itself, fire police perform traffic and crowd control. In some jurisdictions, fire police are exterior firefighters and may be called upon at fire scenes to perform any of the duties of an interior firefighter except those that require a self-contained breathing apparatus. On occasion, fire police also assist regular police: they perform road closures, traffic control, crowd control at public events, missing persons searches, parade details, salvage, security, and other miscellaneous tasks as requested.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) provides firefighting and emergency medical services for the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, California, as well as 59 cities through contracting, including the city of La Habra, which is located in Orange County and is the first city outside of Los Angeles County to contract with LACoFD.
Firefighting in Finland is regulated by the Ministry of the Interior. Municipalities of Finland can choose whether the fire and rescue services are provided by a professional fire brigade, a half-ordinary fire brigade or a voluntary fire brigade. Half-ordinary and voluntary fire brigades rely on non-professional voluntary firefighters who have been trained appropriately. The main responsibilities of fire brigades are rescuing people, protecting property and the environment, limiting damage and consequences.
As firefighting has a rich history throughout the world, traditions in this profession vary widely from country to country.
The Service de sécurité incendie de Montréal is responsible for fire and rescue operations in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. EMS first-response has been available in limited areas since 1976 and to the entire service area since 2009. The SIM is the 7th largest fire department in North America. The department offers high-angle rescue, collapse rescue, hazmat response, ice rescue and nautical rescue.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to firefighting:
Firefighting is the act of extinguishing destructive fires. A firefighter fights these fires with the intent to prevent destruction of life, property and the environment. Firefighting is a highly technical profession, which requires years of training and education in order to become proficient. A fire can rapidly spread and endanger many lives; however, with modern firefighting techniques, catastrophe can usually be avoided. To help prevent fires from starting, a firefighter's duties include public education and conducting fire inspections. Because firefighters are often the first responders to victims in critical conditions, firefighters often also provide basic life support as emergency medical technicians or advanced life support as licensed paramedics. Firefighters make up one of the major emergency services, along with the emergency medical service, the police, and many others.
The Puerto Rico Firefighters Corps (PRFC); is the statewide fire department that provides fire protection, rescue, and protection from other hazards in the U.S. Estado Asociado Libre of Puerto Rico. It was established in 1942 under the Puerto Rico Fire Services. In addition, it offers fire protection services to all the airports under the authority of the Puerto Rico Ports Authority, Rafael Hernández Airport, and Mercedita Airport and they serve as crash rescue divisions. A separate agency, the Puerto Rico Medical Emergency Corps, provides emergency medical services to all Puerto Rico.
Firefighting in the United States dates back to the earliest European colonies in the Americas. Early firefighters were simply community members who would respond to neighborhood fires with buckets. The first dedicated volunteer fire brigade was established in 1736 in Philadelphia. These volunteer companies were often paid by insurance companies in return for protecting their clients.
The Vigili del Fuoco is Italy's institutional agency for fire and rescue service. It is part of the Ministry of Interior's Dipartimento dei Vigili del Fuoco, del Soccorso Pubblico e della Difesa Civile. The Corps' task is to provide safety for people, animals, and property, and to give technical assistance to industries, as well as providing fire prevention advice. It also ensures public safety in terrorist emergencies such as chemical, bacteriological, radiological, and nuclear attacks.
State Fire Service is a professional fire fighting service in Poland. It is subordinate to the Polish Ministry of Interior and Administration. The modern State Fire Service is based on the 1992 legislation.
The Hellenic Fire Service is the national fire and rescue service of Greece. It is part of the Ministry for Citizen Protection.
The Corps of Firefighters of the Vatican City State is the fire brigade of the Vatican City State. It was founded in its present form by Pope Pius XII in 1941, although its origins are much older.
The Fire Service in South Korea is an organization to prevent danger, to protect the Republic of Korea people's lives and property, fire suppression and rescue, relief of emergency patients, prevention of disaster, disaster response, and providing recovery after a disaster occurs. Fire fighters in South Korea are Fire officers, members of an obligatory fire-fighting unit, and volunteer fire fighters. Regarding fire fighting activities, the Framework Act on Fire Service, rescue and emergency activities are regulated by Act of 119 Rescue and Emergency Medical Services. The national fire department is the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Safety and Security, and the local fire department is in charge of the city and circuit fire headquarters.
Museo Parque de Bombas is a museum located inside the historic Parque de Bombas in the Ponce Historic Zone in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
Harrisburg Bureau of Fire (HBF) is a firefighting agency that is located in and serves Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and its surrounding metropolitan area. It is a career firefighting agency with at least 15 firefighters and fire officers on duty at any given time, supplemented with volunteer staffing as well. Everyday duties for the Bureau include fire suppression, emergency medical services, tactical rescue, urban search and rescue, water rescue, hazardous materials response, fire prevention, fire codes enforcement, and public safety educations.
The Military Firefighters Corps of Acre State is the Military Firefighters Corps in Acre, Brazil. The Firefighters Corps is part of the structure of the government. It was effectively created in 1974 alongside the Military Police.
