What role do volunteers play in the Arlington County Fire Department?
Arlington County Fire Department Station 1 is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by career firefighters and paramedics. Volunteers ride with career crews, working alongside county personnel and assisting as members of the crews in whatever capacity is needed. Volunteers do not count as minimum staffing and therefore do not take the place of career personnel on a shift. When situations dictate, volunteer units may be placed in service to supplement existing county resources. For example, volunteers routinely staff a Basic Life Support Ambulance, especially when call volume is high. In addition to responding to emergency incidents, volunteers perform public education demonstrations, fund raising activities, public event standbys, apparatus maintenance, and many other services.
