Atlanta Fire Rescue Department

Atlanta Fire Rescue Department

File:The patch of Atlanta Fire rescue Department- 2014-04-19 11-50.jpg
Operational area
Country	United States
State	Georgia
City	Atlanta
Agency overview
Annual calls	87,320 (2014)
Employees	1,125 (2015)
Annual budget	$107,490,763 (2015)
Staffing	Career
Fire chief	Joel Baker
EMS level	ALS and BLS
IAFF	134
Facilities and equipment
Battalions	7
Stations	35
Engines	35
Trucks	17
Squads	3
USAR	2
Airport crash	10
Rescue boats	4
Website
Official website
IAFF website

The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department provides fire protection and first responder emergency medical services to the city of Atlanta, Georgia. The department is responsible for an area of 132.6 square miles (343 km²) with over 519,000 residents.

History

The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department got its start in February of 1848 when residents were ordered to have fire buckets ready in their homes. It wasn't until three years later, after several major fires, that the Georgia Legislature approved a bill that authorized the formation of Atlanta Fire Company No. 1, which went into service on March 25, 1851.

Stations and apparatus

The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department currently operates out of 34 fire stations, located throughout the city of Atlanta, organized into 7 Battalions, including an Airport Battalion commanding 4 Fire Stations that serve the Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. Below is a list of all of the fire station locations in the city.

	Neighborhood	Engine	Truck	Special	Chief	Battalion
1	Castleberry Hill	Engine 1*	Truck 1	Decon. Unit 1, Air Unit 7, Air Shuttle Unit	Division 1	3
2	Lakewood Heights	Engine 2*	Truck 2	Decon. Unit 2, Air Bag Unit 2		1
3	North Buckhead	Engine 3		Mobile Command Unit		6
5	Westside	Engine 5*		G.S.A.R. Unit 61	Battalion 4	4
6	Sweet Auburn	Engine 6		Squad 4, Q.I.C. Unit 6*, T.S.U. 1		5
8	Hills Park	Engine 8			Battalion 2	2
9	Adamsville	Engine 9*				2
10	Grant Park	Engine 10	Truck 10	Antique Light Truck	Battalion 5	5
11	Atlantic Station	Engine 11	Tower 11	Mini-Pumper 11, A.T.V. 11, Swift Water Rescue Unit		3
12	Edgewood	Engine 12	Truck 12			5
13	East Atlanta	Engine 13*				5
14	Oakland City	Engine 14	Truck 14			1
15	Midtown	Engine 15*	Truck 15		Battalion 3	3
16	Washington Park	Engine 16*	Truck 16	Q.I.C. Unit 16*		2
17	Westview	Engine 17*		EMS 2*, Q.I.C. Unit 17*		4
18	Kirkwood	Engine 18				5
19	Inman Park	Engine 19				3
20	Capitol View Manor	Engine 20				1
21	Buckhead Forest	Engine 21*	Truck 21	Air Bag Unit 21, G.S.A.R. Unit 6	Battalion 6	6
22	Grove Park	Engine 22				2
23	Berkeley Park	Engine 23*		EMS 1*, Mini-Pumper 23		3
24	Hartsfield–Jackson Airport	Engine 24 (ARFF)	Truck 47	ARFF 1, ARFF 2, Squad 24, Mini-Pumper 51		7
25	Cascade Heights	Engine 25	Truck 25			4
26	Westminister	Engine 26*	Truck 26			6
27	Chastain Park	Engine 27		Hose Tender 27		6
28	Scotts Crossing	Engine 28		Foam 28, Reserve Foam Unit		2
29	Piedmont Heights	Engine 29	Truck 29			6
30	Glenrose Heights	Engine 30*			Battalion 1	1
31	Mellwood	Engine 31	Truck 31			4
32	Hartsfield–Jackson Airport	Engine 32 (ARFF)		Med. Unit 1, ARFF, ARFF		7
33	Hartsfield–Jackson Airport	Engine 33 (ARFF)	Truck 43 (ARFF Quint)	ARFF 5, ARFF 6, EMS 3*		7
34	Poole Creek	Engine 34		Mobile Ambulance Bus 1		1
35	Hartsfield–Jackson Airport	Engine 35 (ARFF)		Med. Unit 2, ARFF 7, ARFF 8, ARFF Reserve	Battalion 7	7
38	Brookview Heights	Engine 38*	Truck 38			2
40	Hartsfield–Jackson Airport	Engine 40 (ARFF)	Truck 41 (ARFF Quint)	Med 3, ARFF 3, ARFF 4, Squad 47, Stair Unit 48		7

Notable incidents

Great Atlanta fire

Main article: Great Atlanta fire of 1917

The Great Atlanta fire of 1917 broke out in the Old Fourth Ward around 12:30 pm on May 21, 1917. At the time of the fire, the department had simple horse-drawn fire apparatus and the city's fire hydrants were running with low pressure. It is unclear just how the fire started, but it was fueled by hot temperatures and strong winds. After nearly 10 hours, 300 acres (120 ha) had burned, destroying 1,900 structures and displacing over 10,000 people. Damages were estimated at $5 million, ($92 million when adjusted for inflation).

Winecoff Hotel fire

Main article: Winecoff Hotel fire

The Winecoff Hotel fire, which occurred on December 7, 1946, was the deadliest hotel fire in United States history, killing 119 hotel occupants, including the hotel's owners. The Winecoff Hotel had been advertised as "absolutely fireproof." While the hotel's steel structure was indeed protected against the effects of fire, the hotel's interior finishes were combustible, and the building's exit arrangements consisted of a single stairway serving all fifteen floors. All of the hotel's occupants above the fire's origin on the third floor were trapped, and the fire's survivors either were rescued from upper-story windows or jumped into nets held by firemen.

Bluffton University bus accident

Main article: Bluffton University bus accident

The Bluffton University bus accident was an automobile crash that occurred during the early morning hours of March 2, 2007, on Interstate 75 in Atlanta. A chartered motorcoach was carrying 33 members of the Bluffton University baseball team when at about 5:38 am EST, the bus rolled off of an overpass killing seven and injuring 29 others. The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department was the primary agency on scene for the crash.