How Fire Departments in Wisconsin Are Organized

Wisconsin does not run one statewide fire service. Fire protection is a local job, and the state mostly sets the rules around it. A city, village or town owns each department, or several municipalities share one through a joint agreement or fire district. The crew that answers your 911 call might be career firefighters, paid-on-call members or volunteers.

The Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services, known as DSPS, is the main state body for fire prevention and building safety. It writes the commercial building and fire prevention codes and administers the fire dues program. Under that program, a 2 percent charge on fire insurance premiums is collected and the money is paid back to municipalities to support their fire service, provided they meet requirements such as required building inspections. The Department of Natural Resources handles wildland fire in forested areas, and the Department of Health Services licenses emergency medical services.

In practice you rarely deal with the state. You deal with the local station. The records here are grouped by city and county so you can find the department that actually covers your address.

Five kinds of departments you will run into

City and Suburban Departments: Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay and the Fox Valley

The largest career departments sit in the state's metro areas. Milwaukee has more fire department records than any other city in our database. That count includes more than the city's own stations. One example is the General Mitchell International Airport Air Reserve Station Fire Department, a Department of Defense unit at 300 East College Avenue (414-482-5000). The surrounding suburbs add to the totals for Milwaukee County and for Waukesha County, where departments such as Pewaukee Fire Department Station 1 serve communities west of Milwaukee.

Madison is next, with 17 records. City Of Madison Fire Department Station 11 at 4011 Morgan Way (608-266-4420) is one of the city's stations on our list. Villages and towns around Madison run their own departments, which is why Dane County has far more records than the city alone.

In northeast Wisconsin, Green Bay and De Pere anchor Brown County. The Ashwaubenon Department Of Public Safety, at 2155 Holmgren Way (920-492-2995), covers the village that holds Lambeau Field's neighborhood. De Pere City Fire Department is at 400 Lewis Street (920-339-4086). Up the Fox River, Appleton Fire Department Station 2 sits at 1801 South Matthias Street (920-832-5810). Along Lake Michigan you will find City Of Manitowoc Fire Department Station 1 - Headquarters at 911 Franklin Street (920-686-6541), and Caledonia Fire Department Station 2 at 6040 Douglas Avenue (262-639-9090) in the Racine area.

In these cities each station covers a district. The station list helps you find the closest one, but non-emergency requests such as inspections, smoke alarm help or records usually go through the department's main office. Call ahead before driving to a station, since crews may be out on a call.

Volunteer and Town Departments in Northern and Rural Wisconsin

Outside the metro areas, the fire service leans on volunteers and paid-on-call members. A small city often shows many records because every surrounding town has its own department. Rhinelander has 13 records, including Crescent Fire Department Station 2 at 2241 South River Road (715-282-5287) in Oneida County. Hayward has 10, among them Draper Volunteer Fire Department at 6970 North Park Lane (715-266-2086) in Sawyer County.

Marinette County has 33 records, many of them small volunteer departments such as Crivitz Volunteer Fire Department at 1211 Fj Street (715-854-7201). On Lake Superior, City Of Superior Fire Department Station 3 at 2531 East 5th Street (715-398-6581) protects part of the largest city in Douglas County.

A mailing city in an address is not always the service area. Nekimi Volunteer Fire Department (3790 Pickett Road, listed under Oshkosh in Winnebago County), Hull Township Volunteer Fire Department (Stevens Point, Portage County) and Fillmore Fire Department (West Bend, Washington County) all use a nearby city's mailing address. The same goes for Town Of Wilson-Black River Fire Department, which has a Sheboygan address at 5536 Evergreen Drive (920-452-4900). Check your town or village, not just your post office, to learn who covers you.

Rural coverage has practical differences. Many areas have no hydrants, so departments haul water in tankers and set up portable tanks. Response times can be longer, and help from neighboring departments through mutual aid agreements is routine. In parts of the state, systems such as MABAS Wisconsin organize that help. Insurers also rate departments with the ISO Public Protection Classification, and a weaker rating can mean higher home insurance premiums. Ask your insurer which class applies to your address.

Airport fire stations in Wisconsin

Commercial airports have their own aircraft rescue and firefighting crews, because federal rules require them at airports with scheduled passenger service. Two appear in our records: Chippewa Valley Regional Airport Fire Department, 3800 Starr Avenue, Eau Claire (715-839-3863), and La Crosse Airport Fire Department, 2841 Fanta Reed Road, La Crosse (608-789-7450). These crews focus on the airfield. For a house fire or medical call in town, dial 911 and let dispatch send the right unit.

Wisconsin Fire Safety Rules That Affect Your Home

Wisconsin law requires working smoke detectors in homes and rental units. It also requires carbon monoxide alarms in most residential buildings that have fuel-burning appliances or an attached garage. Landlords must install the required alarms in rentals. Many departments will answer questions about placement and battery replacement, and some run alarm programs for older homeowners.

State law also directs fire departments to inspect public buildings and places of employment on a regular schedule. That inspection work is tied to the fire dues program. If you own or manage a business, expect an inspector to look at exits, extinguishers, alarms and storage. Bring floor plans and your extinguisher service records to make the visit faster.

Burning rules depend on where you live. In much of rural and northern Wisconsin, the DNR issues burning permits and restricts burning when fire danger is high, mostly in spring. Cities and villages often have their own ordinances for yard waste and recreational fires. Before you light anything, call your local department or town hall, and check the DNR's burning permit information for your county.

Fire departments across Wisconsin 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 647 cities across Wisconsin. They are spread across 72 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration include Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, which have multiple fire stations strategically located to maintain rapid response times for their dense populations.

Residents of Wisconsin 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

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
I
J
K
L
M
O
P
R
S
T
V
W

Residents of Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin to find the nearest location.

Reaching the Right Fire Department in Wisconsin

Start with the address you need help for. Your property tax bill names the town, village or city that taxes you, and that body decides who provides fire protection. If you are unsure, call the clerk's office. In counties with many departments, such as Marathon County with 36 records or Dodge County with 35, neighbors a few miles apart can be served by different departments.

Treat the phone numbers in our listings as business lines. For fire, smoke, carbon monoxide or a medical emergency, dial 911. Most counties run dispatch centers that send the closest available unit, even across municipal lines.

For non-emergency matters, weekday business hours work best at career departments such as City Of Kenosha Fire Department (625 52nd Street, 262-653-4100) or City Of Beloit Fire Department Station 3 (1048 McKinley Avenue, 608-364-2926). Many volunteer departments, such as Wheatland Volunteer Fire Department in Racine County or Delavan City Volunteer Fire Department in Walworth County, have no staff at the station all day. Leave a message or contact the town or city hall.

Have the facts ready: street address, nearest cross road, date, a permit or case number if one exists, and a contact name for building access. For inspections, gather floor plans and extinguisher service tags.

Season matters. Heating season brings chimney and space-heater questions, spring brings burning restrictions in the north, and summer brings water-rescue calls near lakes and rivers. Departments often hold open houses around Fire Prevention Week in October.

Departments merge, move and change numbers. If a listing does not answer, check your municipality's website or call the county's non-emergency dispatch line.

Wisconsin Fire Department FAQs

No single agency runs them. Each department answers to its city, village or town board, or to a joint fire district board. At the state level, the Department of Safety and Professional Services sets fire prevention and building codes and administers the fire dues program. The Department of Natural Resources handles wildland fire and burning permits in its protection areas, and the Department of Health Services licenses emergency medical services, which many fire departments provide. Dispatch is usually handled by a county or regional center. For a complaint about a specific department, start with the chief, then the municipal clerk or governing board.

Your mailing city may not match your fire district. Several listings here, such as Nekimi Volunteer Fire Department near Oshkosh and Hull Township Volunteer Fire Department near Stevens Point, serve towns rather than the city on the address line. Check your tax bill for your town, village or city name, then contact its clerk or the county dispatch center. If you live in a township, ask whether it runs its own department, contracts with a neighbor or belongs to a fire district. Your home insurer may also ask which department covers you, so it is worth knowing.

It depends on where you live. In areas under Department of Natural Resources protection, which covers the forested parts of the state including much of the north, you generally need a permit to burn debris, and the DNR can suspend permits when fire danger is high. Many cities and villages ban or limit yard waste burning by ordinance, while allowing small recreational fires in a ring or pit. Before burning, check the DNR's burning permit information and call your local fire department or town hall. Burning household garbage is illegal in Wisconsin.

Emergency fire response is normally paid through local property taxes, and in volunteer areas through town budgets, so there is usually no bill for putting out a fire at your home. Charges can apply in specific cases, such as repeated false alarms, hazardous materials cleanup, some rescue or extrication calls, or ambulance transports billed to insurance. Rules differ by municipality and are set by local ordinance or fee schedule. Ask the department or clerk for the current schedule. If a bill surprises you, request an itemized explanation and the ordinance that authorizes it.

Fire incident reports are generally public records under the Wisconsin Public Records Law. Contact the department that responded, or its municipality's records custodian, and give the address, date, approximate time and your connection to the incident. A written request is best. Departments may charge the actual, necessary and direct cost of copying, and they may redact personal details such as medical information. Insurance companies often ask for these reports after a loss, so request one early. Volunteer departments sometimes route requests through the town clerk, which can add a few days.

Start with the department that covers your home. Volunteer and paid-on-call departments recruit through town halls, open houses and social media, and most train new members themselves. Wisconsin's technical college system, including Fox Valley Technical College, offers fire service training. Larger career departments in places like Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay run competitive hiring with written tests, physical ability tests and interviews, and often prefer EMS certification. Expect a background check and a medical exam. Requirements vary, so ask each department for its current application steps and deadlines.