Printed from: http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/firerescue/divisions/summary.cfm on 11/22/2009
| Summary |
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Hillsborough County Fire Rescue is a dynamic department serving a diverse community in the unincorporated areas of Hillsborough County. From its humble
beginnings in the 1950s as an all volunteer force consisting of about a dozen loosely associated community based organizations, HCFR has seen many exciting
changes. Volunteer firefighters are still a vital component of our service in some areas of the county. Since hiring our first fulltime career firefighters
in 1973, the department has steadily evolved into one the largest, most progressive departments in the state.
Now, with 893 career uniformed and support personnel, Fire Rescue continues to set the pace in Fire and Emergency Medical Response. Since the 1997 merge of Hillsborough County Fire Rescue and EMS, we have placed paramedics on each career, front-line apparatus: 25 Rescues, 39 Engines, 4 Ladders and 2 Special Operations Units. As nearly 85% of our more than 80,000 emergency responses require some level medical care, having paramedics assigned to each unit assures that the citizens of Hillsborough County are receiving rapid Advanced Life Support care. Fire Rescue and the BOCC has implemented a plan to continue placing new fire rescue stations in areas where growth is occurring or gaps in coverage may exist. Fire Chief Bill Nesmith leads an executive/command staff of two Assistant Chiefs who direct the Operations and Administrative branches. The Personnel and Rescue Division Chiefs, as well as the Fire Marshal, also report directly to the Fire Chief. All fiscal functions, facilities maintenance and supply, and apparatus / equipment procurement & repair are under the direction of the Administrative Assistant Chief. The three Shift Commanders, as well as the training Chief and the Special Operations Chief, report directly to the Operations Assistant Chief. The Ops Chief is responsible for the overall response readiness of all front line personnel. Please visit all of our Fire Rescue Divisions to learn more about HCFR. |