- Author
- Karter, M. J.
- Title
- U.S. Fire Department Profile Through 2004.
- Coporate
- National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA
- Keywords
- fire departments | fire fighters | fire statistics
- Identifiers
- career fire fighters; voluntary fire fighters
- Abstract
- NFPA estimates that there were approximately 1,100,750 firefighters in the U.S. in 2004. Of the total number of firefighters, 305,150 or 27% were career firefighters and 795,600 (73%) were volunteer firefighters. Most of the career firefighters (73%) are in communities that protect 25,000 or more people. Most of the volunteer firefighters (95%) are in departments that protect fewer than 25,000 with more than half are located in small, rural departments that protect fewer than 2,500 people. There are an estimated 30,400 fire departments in the U.S. Of these, 1,917 departments are all career, 1,242 are mostly career, 4,084 are mostly volunteer and 23,157 are all volunteer. In the U.S., 13,071 or 43% of departments provide EMS service, 4,141 departments or 14% provide EMS service and advance life support, while 13,188 departments or 43% provide no EMS support. This report includes statistics through 2004 on the numbers and characteristics of U.S. of fire departments and firefighters. It also includes information on the number of fire stations, pumpers and ladders nationwide, rates of usage of such equipment by community size, and total national direct expenditures on local fire protection.