Charlotte Fire Department

Charlotte Fire Department
Operational area
Country United States
State North Carolina
City Charlotte
Agency overview[1]
Established1875 (1875)
Annual calls~137,000 (2022)
Employees1,300 (2022)
Annual budget$137,741,974 (2021)
StaffingCareer
Fire chiefReginald Johnson
IAFF660
Facilities and equipment[2]
Divisions1
Battalions9
Stations43
Engines44
Trucks13
Tillers1
Platforms4
Rescues2
Tenders6
HAZMAT4
USAR6
Airport crash10
Wildland5
Fireboats2
Rescue boats4
Website
Official website
IAFF website

The Charlotte Fire Department (CFD) provides fire suppression, emergency medical services, technical rescue services, hazardous materials mitigation, disaster response, code enforcement, fire investigations, and public education for the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.[3][4][5] The department is responsible for an area of approximately 312 square miles (810 km2) with a day population of two million and a night population of 885,000.[5]

History

An example of the NFPA 704 "safety square", developed on the initiative of the CFD.

The Charlotte Fire Department was officially formed in 1875, although fire services existed in the area for decades before that.[6]

Charlotte Fire Department is notable for its role in the development of NFPA 704, the "fire diamond" found on chemicals which depicts in a simple and clear manner the flammability, health hazards and reactivity of the substance. A fire at the Charlotte Chemical Company in 1959 led to severe injuries to many of the firefighters.[7][8] Upon arrival, the fire crew found a fire burning inside a vat that firefighters assumed to be burning kerosene. The crew tried to suppress the fire with water, which resulted in the vat exploding due to metallic sodium being stored in the kerosene. Thirteen firefighters were injured, several of whom had critical injuries while one lost both ears and most of his face from the incident. At the time, such vats were not labelled with the materials they contained, so firefighters did not have the necessary information to recognize that hazardous materials were present, which required a specific response. In this case, sodium was able to react with water to release hydrogen gas and large amounts of heat.

The Charlotte Fire Department developed training to respond to fires involving hazardous materials, ensured that protective clothing was available to those responding, and expanded the fire prevention inspection program. Fire Marshal J. F. Morris developed the diamond-shaped placard as a marking system to indicate when a building contained hazardous materials.[9]

Stations and apparatus

As of January 2025 this is the current list of stations and apparatus for the department:[10]

Fire Station Number Neighborhood Engine Company Ladder Company Rescue Company Special Unit Battalion Chief Unit
1 First Ward Engine 1 Ladder 1 Field Comm 1 & 2, MCP 1, Vent 1, Division Chief (Car 6, 7,8) Battalion Chief 1
2 South End Engine 2 Ladder 2 relocated to 43
3 Rama Engine 3 Tower 3
4 Fourth Ward (Uptown) Engine 4 Ladder 4
5 Wesley Heights Engine 5 Brush 5
6 Myers Park Engine 6
7 NoDa Engine 7
8 Plaza Midwood Engine 8 Rehab 1
9 Providence Township Engine 9 Tanker 9
10 Camp Greene Engine 10 Rescue 10 Dive 10 Battalion Chief 3
11 Graham Heights Engine 11 Rescue 11 Dive 11 Battalion Chief 9
12 Madison Park Engine 12
13 South Hoskins Engine 13 Ladder 13 Hazmat 13
14 Cotswold Engine 14
15 Shamrock Engine 15
16 South Park Engine 16 Ladder 16
17 Charlotte Douglas International Airport East Engine 17 Blazes 1, 2, 5, & 14 Battalion Chief 8
18 Washington Heights Engine 18 Tower 18
19 Landsdowne Engine 19
20 Starmount Engine 20 Brush 20 Battalion Chief 5
21 Paw Creek Engine 21 Brush 21 & Foam 21
22 Derita Engine 22 Tanker 22
23 Hickory Grove Engine 23 Ladder 23
24 Carmel Village Engine 24 Ladder 24
25 Oakdale Engine 25 Foam 25 Battalion Chief 6
26 Ayrsley Engine 26 Tower 26
27 University City Engine 27 Tower 27 Battalion Chief 2
28 Northlake Engine 28 Ladder 28
29 Idlewild South Engine 29 Brush 29
30 Whippoorwill Lake Engine 30
31 Highland Creek Engine 31 Ladder 31 Brush 31
32 Ballantyne Engine 32 Ladder 32 Hazmat 32
33 Shuffletown Engine 33 Ladder 33 Deluge 33, Tanker 33
34 Newell Engine 34 Decon 34, Hazmat 34
35 Withrow Downs Engine 35 Tanker 35
36 Mallard Creek Engine 36 MOC 1
37 Steele Creek Engine 37 Engine 90 Tanker 37
38 Withers Cove Engine 38 Dive 38, Fire Boat 38
39 The Arboretum Engine 39 Ladder 39 Battalion Chief 7
40 Wilgrove Engine 40 Ladder 40 Tanker 40
41 Charlotte Douglas International Airport West Blazes 41, 42, & 47
42 Eastland Engine 42, Engine 65 Battalion Chief 4
43 Clanton Park Engine 43 Ladder 2 USAR 1, USAR 2
44 Under Construction and will open in 2025 River District Engine 44
45 Under Construction and will open in 2025 Hidden Valley Ladder 45
46 Coming Soon and construction will start in 2025 Beatties Ford Road / Miranda Road Engine 46
3rd Airport Station (Station 47) Charlotte Douglas International Airport

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charlotte Fire Department.
  1. ^ "FY2015 Strategic Operation Plan" (PDF). City of Charlotte. Retrieved April 24, 2015.[permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ "Operations". Charlotte Fire Department. Archived from the original on April 19, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  3. ^ Chrisman, Spencer (July 16, 2024). "Firefighters extinguish 2-alarm fire at brewery in NoDa". www.wbtv.com.
  4. ^ "Firefighters contain 2-alarm fire at Heist Brewery in NoDa". July 17, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "About Us". Charlotte Fire Department. Archived from the original on April 19, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  6. ^ "History". Charlotte Fire Department. Archived from the original on April 16, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  7. ^ "Fact Friday 153 - Charlotte's Haz-Mat History". 704 Shop. June 22, 2018. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  8. ^ "July marks 62 years since Charlotte Fire invented Haz-Mat safety measure". Queen City News. June 28, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  9. ^ "History of the Charlotte Fire Department" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 7, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  10. ^ "Stations". Charlotte Fire Department. Archived from the original on May 13, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015.