How Fire Protection Is Organized Across New Jersey's 21 Counties

New Jersey has more than nine million residents, 21 counties and 564 municipalities, and fire protection is organized almost entirely at the local level. There is no single statewide fire department. Instead you will find career city departments, township companies, volunteer fire companies and independent fire districts, sometimes working side by side. Our listings run from Newark Fire Department Engine 12 on Clinton Avenue to Lower Bank Volunteer Fire Company in Egg Harbor, so the first task is working out who actually covers your address.

The town in a mailing address can mislead. Cheesequake Volunteer Fire Company Station 1 uses a Matawan address on Route 34, while Middletown Township Station 9 - River Plaza Hose Company 1 is listed with a Red Bank street address on Applegate Street. Check your municipal website or call the non-emergency number before you drive anywhere. For a fire, a medical emergency or smoke in a building, always call 911 first.

Duplicate place names add to the confusion. New Jersey has several Franklin townships and Washington townships in different counties, and our Franklin and Washington listings (18 and 13) mix them together. Our city labels are also shortened in places, so 'Jersey' means Jersey City and 'Egg Harbor' usually means Egg Harbor Township. Always match the county shown in the listing before you head to a station.

Career, Volunteer and Combination Departments

Large cities staff full-time career departments. Newark, Jersey City and Bayonne run multiple engine and ladder companies from neighborhood firehouses, including Jersey City Engine 11 at 152 Lincoln Street and City of Bayonne Fire Department Station 1 on Port Terminal Boulevard. These departments keep crews on duty around the clock and normally have a fire prevention bureau that handles inspections and permits.

Smaller suburbs and rural townships often rely on volunteers or a mix of paid and volunteer staff. Janvier Volunteer Fire Company in Franklin Township, Colonia Volunteer Fire Department in Woodbridge and Cassville Volunteer Fire Company 1 in Jackson are typical examples. Volunteer firehouses may not be staffed during the day, so a walk-in visit can go unanswered. Call ahead, or ask the township clerk which office handles fire inspections and records. Woodbridge alone has 13 listings, and you can browse nearby companies in Middlesex County.

Fire Districts and Boards of Fire Commissioners

Many New Jersey townships are divided into independent fire districts. Each district is run by an elected Board of Fire Commissioners, adopts its own budget and levies its own tax on property within its boundaries. Hamilton Fire District 4 - Enterprise Fire Company on Klockner Road in Mercer County and Freehold Township Fire District 2 - East Freehold Fire Company on Dutch Lane Road in Monmouth County both follow this model. Hamilton's numbered districts show how one township can hold several separate fire agencies.

District meetings and budgets are open to the public. If you have a question about staffing, equipment or the district portion of your property tax, the commissioners are the right audience. The chief runs operations; the board runs the money. Your township clerk can tell you which district you live in.

Regional Differences: Urban North, Jersey Shore and the Pinelands

Northern New Jersey is the densest part of the state. Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Bergen counties combine high-rise apartments, older wood-frame multifamily buildings and busy industrial corridors. Bergen County has the most listings in our database, 170, partly because it contains 70 municipalities, many with their own company. Township of Washington Fire Department on Washington Avenue (201-666-0750) is one of them. In Essex County, Newark Engine 12 can be reached at 973-733-7400.

Along the coast, demand follows the calendar. Monmouth County (165 listings) and Ocean County (113) fill up in summer, and so do the barrier-island towns of Cape May County. Ocean City Fire and Rescue Services Department headquarters stands at 550 Asbury Avenue, and Long Branch Fire Department is at 344 Broadway. In Ocean County, East Dover Fire Company 4 (Station 28) on Fischer Boulevard serves part of Toms River, while Brick Township runs a Fire Training Center on Herbertsville Road. Summer traffic and crowded beach blocks make it worth knowing your nearest station before the season starts.

South Jersey mixes suburbs with the Pinelands. Cherry Hill Fire Department Station 7 on Wilbur Avenue in Camden County serves a dense suburban area. Ancora Fire Department on Spring Garden Road in Hammonton sits in a more rural part of Atlantic County. Wildfire is a genuine concern in the Pine Barrens across Burlington County, Ocean County and Atlantic County. The New Jersey Forest Fire Service, part of the Department of Environmental Protection, issues open-burning permits and fights wildfires on state and private woodland. Burlington Township Station 302 - Beverly Road Fire Company 2, at 1001 Beverly Road, is one of the many local companies in that region.

Farther north and west the terrain changes. Hampton Township Fire and Rescue Station 1 on Halsey Road is in Sussex County. Phillipsburg Fire Department on Corliss Avenue (908-454-5500) protects a Delaware River city in Warren County, and Morris Township Station 5 on Dwyer Lane covers part of Morris County. Hillier terrain and fewer hydrants in some areas mean departments depend on tanker shuttles and mutual aid from neighboring towns.

Federal installations have their own crews. The McGuire Air Force Base Fire Department, a Department of Defense unit at 1708 Fire Lane, appears under Trenton in our database but sits on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Burlington County. Base departments serve the installation first, so civilians normally deal with the surrounding township instead.

State Rules That Apply to Fire Departments in New Jersey

The Division of Fire Safety, part of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, sets statewide fire code and training standards. The Uniform Fire Safety Act and the Uniform Fire Code (N.J.A.C. 5:70) are enforced mostly by local enforcing agencies, meaning the fire prevention bureau or fire official in your municipality. Departments also submit incident data to the state through the New Jersey Fire Incident Reporting System.

These are the services homeowners and business owners ask about most:

Before you visit any office, have your property address, the type of building and any permit or certificate numbers ready. Weekday mornings are usually the best time to reach a prevention bureau. For records and inspections tied to a volunteer company, start with the township or borough office. Then use the listings on this page to find the station that covers your street.

Fire departments across New Jersey range from large career departments in major cities to volunteer departments serving small rural communities, all operating under state fire codes and local ordinances to protect residents from fire and emergency hazards.

Fire Departments locations are available in 523 cities across New Jersey. They are spread across 21 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration include Newark, Franklin, Egg Harbor, which have multiple fire stations strategically located to maintain rapid response times for their dense populations.

Residents of New Jersey should know your local fire department's non-emergency phone number so you can request burn permits, safety inspections, and community programs without tying up the 911 emergency line.

Fire Departments by Counties

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Residents of New Jersey planning any outdoor burning should contact their local fire department for open burning regulations and permit requirements, which can vary significantly by county and season due to drought conditions and fire danger ratings.

Browse Fire Departments by county across New Jersey to find the nearest location.

Finding the Right Fire Company Where You Live in New Jersey

Start with your municipality, not the county. The department or district that covers your street is set by local boundaries, and those boundaries do not always match the town name on your mail. Middletown Township in Monmouth County spreads its coverage across numbered stations, including Station 9 - River Plaza Hose Company 1 and Station 11 - Old Village Fire Company on Route 35.

Counties still matter in an emergency. New Jersey counties maintain fire mutual aid arrangements and a county fire coordinator, so a company from the next town may arrive at a large fire in yours. That is normal and does not mean your own department is missing.

The phone numbers in our listings, such as Bridgeton City Fire Department at 856-451-0091 and Burlington Township Station 302 at 609-386-0595, are generally station or business lines. Use them for inspections, records and questions, never for emergencies. If nobody answers at a volunteer house, leave your name, address and reason for calling, then follow up with the municipal office that oversees fire prevention.

Bring photo ID, the property address and any prior permit numbers to an in-person visit. For a pre-sale certificate, also bring your closing date and the contact who will give access to the property.

Fire Department Questions New Jersey Residents Ask

The Division of Fire Safety, part of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, administers the Uniform Fire Code and sets standards for fire official certification and firefighter training. Enforcement is local. Your municipal fire official or fire prevention bureau inspects commercial buildings, issues permits and follows up on hazards such as blocked exits. Operations are separate: your city, township or fire district decides staffing, equipment and station locations. If you disagree with an inspection result, ask the fire official how to appeal, because the code includes an appeal process.

In most towns, yes. Before a one- or two-family home is sold, the local fire official typically checks for working smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms and a portable fire extinguisher, then issues a certificate of compliance. It is a limited check, not a full building inspection. Call the fire prevention bureau early, ask about the fee, and confirm what the inspector wants to see. The extinguisher should be mounted in an accessible spot near the kitchen. A failed check usually means fixing the item and scheduling a re-inspection.

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service, part of the Department of Environmental Protection, regulates open burning of brush and similar material, and a permit is generally required. Many municipalities add stricter rules or ban open burning outright, so also check with your town hall or fire official. Burning trash or construction debris is prohibited. Permits may be unavailable on days with high fire danger, which is common in spring across the Pine Barrens counties. Never leave a burn unattended, and keep water or a hose nearby.

Contact the company directly. Volunteer companies such as Janvier Volunteer Fire Company in Franklin Township or Cheesequake Volunteer Fire Company Station 1 near Matawan set their own application steps, which often include an application, a background check and interviews. New members complete basic firefighter training, typically Firefighter I, over several months through county or local training centers. Companies also need drivers, fire police and administrative help, so you can contribute without entering burning buildings. Age limits vary, and some companies run junior programs for teenagers with parental consent. Ask about meeting nights before applying.

A fire district is an independent local government created to provide fire protection in part of a township. It has an elected Board of Fire Commissioners, its own budget and its own tax levy. A municipal department, like Newark's, is part of city government and is funded through the municipal budget. Hamilton Fire District 4 and Freehold Township Fire District 2 are examples in our listings. Both types respond to 911 calls the same way. The difference matters when you want to attend a budget meeting, vote on district matters or question how tax dollars are spent.

Submit an Open Public Records Act request to the municipality or fire district that responded. Include the date, address and type of incident. Custodians must respond within seven business days, even if only to say more time is needed, and some details may be redacted. Many towns accept requests through an online form. Insurers often need a report after a loss, so ask your claims adjuster whether they will request it directly. For incidents on federal property, such as McGuire Air Force Base in Burlington County, contact the installation instead.

New Jersey's fire code requires working smoke alarms in homes, and carbon monoxide alarms where a home has fuel-burning appliances or an attached garage. Place alarms on each level and outside sleeping areas. Test them monthly and replace them by the manufacturer's date, commonly ten years for smoke alarms. Some local departments offer free alarm checks or installation help, so call your station's non-emergency line to ask. A carbon monoxide alarm that sounds means getting everyone outside and calling 911 from outside the home.