District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department
Introduction The '''District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department''' (also known as DC FEMS, FEMS, DCFD, DC Fire, or DC Fire & EMS), established July 1, 1804, provides fire protection and emergency medical service for the District of Columbia, in the United States. An organ of the devolved district government, Fire & EMS is responsible for providing fire suppression, ambulance service and hazardous materials containment for the federal district.
History A DCFD fire engine in December 2005.DCFD Engine Company #23 (Foggy Bottom Firehouse)DCFD Engine 7On January 13, 1803, District of Columbia passed its first law about fire control, requiring the owner of each building in the district to provide at least one leather firefighting bucket per story or pay a $1 fine per missing bucket.The first firefighting organizations in the district were private volunteer companies. To end the problems created by rivalries between these companies, District of Columbia approved in 1864 an act to consolidate them and organize a paid fire department. Seven years passed before it was implemented on September 23, 1871, creating the all-professional District of Columbia Fire Department (DCFD) with a combination of paid and volunteer staff. The department had seven paid firefighters and 13 call men to answer alarms, manning three engines and two ladders.By 1900, the DCFD had grown to 14 engine companies, four ladder companies, and two chemical companies.In 1968, the entire DCFD was mobilized during the riots that followed the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The four days of disorder saw widespread civil unrest, looting and arson, which ultimately required help with 70 outside companies to battle over 500 fires and perform 120 rescues.In the 1970s and 1980s, the department was rife with racial tension, as the nearly all-white department became much more racially integrated and African Americans sought upper-level supervisory and management positions.===2010s budget and maintenance problems===In January 2010, ''The Washington Examiner'' reported that, in a major management failure, the agency failed to budget for seniority pay in its fiscal 2010 budget, causing a $2 million shortfall. After a hiring freeze left 130 positions unfilled, the department was projected to spend $15.4 million in fiscal 2010 (2.5 times the budgeted amount). More than 75 percent of the agency's budget goes to salaries and fringe benefits.Problems with vehicle maintenance also worsened after 2010.The department lost track of the location of reserve vehicles, and sometimes listed fire engines as available for duty when they had been stripped for parts and sent to the junkyard. In 2012, the agency hired a consultant at a cost of $182,000 to create an accurate database of vehicle status and location. Both the D.C. Council and the District of Columbia's inspector general have strongly criticized the department's record. The District of Columbia Firefighters Association, Local 36, and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) have argued that the problem lies with poor management, while DCFEMS has said the problems either cannot be accounted for or are the result of rank-and-file incompetence or neglect.In July 2013, more than 60 DCFEMS ambulances were out of commission due to maintenance issues, and the department was forced to hire a private ambulance service to provide staffing at a Major League Baseball game. On August 8, 2013, a DCFEMS ambulance ran out of fuel while part of President Barack Obama's motorcade, and ended up stranded on the South Lawn of the White House (EMS personnel said they reported a broken fuel gauge months ago, while DCFEMS said workers failed to fill the vehicle with gasoline.) On August 13, 2013, two DCFEMS ambulances caught fire—one while delivering a patient to MedStar Washington Hospital Center, the other while responding to an emergency call at an apartment building on Benning Road SE (another ambulance was dispatched to take the patient to the hospital. )In June 2015, Jullette M. Saussy was named the medical director of DC Fire and EMS. On January 29, 2016, she announced her resignation from that position in a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser. In her letter, she called the department's culture "highly toxic to the delivery of any semblance of quality pre-hospital medical care."
Stations and apparatus Engine 10 and Truck 13's quarters in Trinidad.Engine 20 and Truck 12's quarters in TenleytownFirehouse 13 in L'Enfant Plaza, these are the DCFD's stations and equipment.Firehouse NumberNeighborhoodEngine CompanyTruck CompanyRescue Squad CompanyAmbulance or Medic UnitSpecialized UnitCommand UnitBattalion 1West End Engine 1  Truck 2 Ambulance 1Medic 1Twin Agent Unit 2  6 2ChinatownEngine 2 Rescue Squad 1 Medic 2Field Command UnitMobile Command UnitRescue Squad 1 Support UnitBattalion Chief 6EMS 66 3Judiciary SquareEngine 3   Ambulance 3  Medic 3Water Supply Engine 52  6 4Pleasant PlainsEngine 4  Ambulance 4 Air Unit 1Customer Service Unit 4Mass DeconEMS 7Safety OfficerSpecial Operations Battalion Chief4 5Georgetown Engine 5   Medic 5 Canteen Unit 1Rehab Unit  5 6Shaw Engine 6Truck 4 Ambulance 6  1 7Navy Yard Engine 7   Medic 7Brush Unit 1  2 8Lincoln ParkEngine 8   Ambulance 8Medic 8Air Unit 2Customer Service Unit 2Mass DeconBattalion Chief 2EMS 22 9 U StreetEngine 9 Truck 9 Ambulance 9  4 10 TrinidadEngine 10 Truck 13 Medic 10   1  11 Columbia HeightsEngine 11 Truck 6 Ambulance 11Water Supply Engine 54Battalion Chief 4EMS 44 12 Edgewood  Engine 12   Ambulance 12Customer Service Unit 1Gator 1Hazmat Unit 1Hazmat Unit 2Battalion Chief 1EMS 11 13 L'Enfant PlazaEngine 13 Truck 10 Ambulance 13 Foam Unit 1Foam Unit 2Foam Unit TrailerTwin Agent Unit 1  6 14 Fort Totten Engine 14   Ambulance 14Medic 14  1 15 AnacostiaEngine 15  Rescue Squad 3 Ambulance 15Cave-In UnitCave-In Support UnitCustomer Service Unit 3Rescue Squad 3 Support Unit Battalion Chief 3EMS 33 16 Franklin ParkEngine 16 Tower 3 Ambulance 16Deputy Fire Chief of OperationsEMS 86  17 BrooklandEngine 17    Medic 17  1 18 Capitol Hill Engine 18 Truck 7 Ambulance 18  2  19 Randle Highlands Engine 19   Ambulance 19  Ambulance 19BMedic 19   3 20 Tenleytown Engine 20 Truck 12 Ambulance 20 Battalion Chief 5EMS 55 21 Adams Morgan Engine 21   Medic 21Water Supply Engine 55 5 22 Brightwood Engine 22Truck 11 Ambulance 22  4  23 Foggy Bottom  Engine 23   Ambulance 23  6 24 Petworth Engine 24  Rescue Squad 2Medic 24Confined Space UnitMass Casualty Unit 1Mass Casualty Support Unit 1Mass Casualty Support Unit 2Medical Ambulance Bus 1Medical Ambulance Bus 2Rescue Squad 2 Support UnitTunnel Rescue UnitHeavy Wrecker Arson Investigation officer4 25 Congress Heights Engine 25   Medic 25Mass Decon 3 26 Brentwood Engine 26 Truck 15 Ambulance 26  1 27 Deanwood Engine 27   Ambulance 27 Medic 27  2 28 Cleveland Park Engine 28 Truck 14 Ambulance 28  5 29 Palisades Engine 29 Truck 5 Ambulance 29 Gator 2  5 30 Capitol View Engine 30 Truck 17 Ambulance 30 Ambulance 30B Medic 30  2 31 Chevy Chase Engine 31   Medic 31  5 32 Garfield Heights Engine 32 Truck 16 Ambulance 32  3 33 Highlands Engine 33 Truck 8 Ambulance 33 Medic 33Mass Casualty Unit 2Medical Ambulance Bus 3  3  Southwest Waterfront |   Fire Boat 1Fire Boat 2Fire Boat 3Fire Boat 4Fire Boat Support Unit  6
See also * Government of the District of Columbia* Fireboat John H. Glenn Jr.* Benjamin C. Grenup Monument built to honor the first D.C. firefighter killed in action
References
External links ** Flickr Group*