John Gresham
Chief

  
   Brandon Homer
Assistant Chief
  

Essie Patrick
Division Chief
 

FIRE PUP

Elbert Fire's Newest Member

Fire Department Information

• Stations, Apparatus & Personnel

• Burn Permits

• Fire Safety Inspections, Classes, Demos & Station Tours

A burn ban is in effect for the Elbert Fire Protection District. Please keep our community safe. Do not burn with out a permit from Elbert Fire.

Elbert County has teamed up with the 911 Authority board, Fire Departments and local Towns to implement CodeRED, an emergency notification system via phone, a service FREE to Elbert County residents. For more information Click Here.

CPR/ First Aid Classes
By learning CPR you increase the chance of survival for a loved one, neighbor or even a stranger. Please make knowing CPR/ First Aid a priority.

Volunteer with Elbert Fire and Rescue

On December 7th, 1736 Benjamin Franklin established the Union Fire Company in Philadelphia with 30 members. Ben Franklin was familiar with Boston's Mutual Fire Societies which were also known as "Fire Clubs." But the "Fire Clubs" existed for the protection of its members, not the community at large. Ben Franklin wanted organizations that would battle all fires, regardless of whose property was burning.  The Union Fire Company, sometimes called Benjamin Franklin's Bucket Brigade, was the first volunteer fire fighting organization in Philadelphia and was formed after a series of publications in the Pennsylvania Gazette by Franklin and others pointing out the need for more effective handling of fires in Philadelphia and remained active until approximately 1820.

The Union Fire Company was an association for mutual assistance. Each member agreed to furnish, at his own expense, six leather buckets and two stout linen bags, each marked with his name and the name of the company, which he was to bring to every fire. The buckets were for carrying water to extinguish the flames, and the bags were to receive and hold property which was in danger, to save it from risk of theft. The members pledged themselves to repair to any place in danger upon an alarm of fire with their apparatus. Some were to superintend the use of the water, others were to stand at the doors of houses in danger, and to protect the property from theft.

George Washington was a volunteer firefighter in Alexandria, Virginia. In 1774, as a member of the Friendship Veterans Fire Engine Company, he bought a new fire engine and gave it to the town, which was its very first.  However the United States did not have government-run fire departments until around the time of the American Civil War. Prior to this time, private fire brigades compete with one another to be the first to respond to a fire because insurance companies paid brigades to save buildings. Underwriters also employed their own Salvage Corps in some cities. The first known female firefighter Molly Williams took her place with the men on the dragropes during the blizzard of 1818 in New York and pulled the pumper to the fire through the deep snow. Williams made a distinguished presence in her calico dress and checked apron and was said to be "as good a fire laddie as many of the boys."
 

This is just a small glimpse into the history of volunteer firefighting. Emergency services have depended on volunteer support for many years.  The Elbert Fire Protection District is made up of an all volunteer staff.  Residents from Elbert and as far away as Monument, Centennial and  Littleton give their time and training to answer the call. You can be a part of an organization with a rich and noble history. The importance of volunteers to the delivery of emergency medical and fire suppression services cannot be overstated.  Rural America relies almost totally on the volunteer system to provide EMS and fire services in a timely manner.

Join the men and women of the Elbert (Volunteer) Fire Protection District.

Support to Victims of Fire

Unable to donate your time?  You can still help.  A fund was set up to help victims of fire in the Elbert Fire Protection District.  For more information e-mail, call (303) 648-3000 or write to:

Elbert Fire Protection District
P.O. Box 98, 24310 Main Street
Elbert, Colorado 80106

Highlights

Update:

• Open Burning, Excepting charcoal grill fires, fires in approved portable exterior fireplaces, and outdoor welding or hot work

• Outdoor smoking, excepting smoking within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site, or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials

• The sale or use of fireworks and educational rockets

• Use of indoor fireplaces and wood burning stoves without approved chimneys and spark arrestors

• Off road vehicles without, forest service approved spark arrestors

Contact the Office of Emergency Management for further information at 303.805.6132 or email: OEM@ElbertCounty-CO.Gov. Mitigation programs are available to reduce fire danger around your property. Keep grasses down and contact your Fire Department for safety tips during this dry summer end.