• 1999 Fire Report Highlights
• 2000 Fire Report Highlights

Recruitment Period: January through March

Applications available at Station 1
205 East Main Street :: Belgrade, Montana

Originally, Fire Departments were formed with the sole objective of saving lives and property through fire suppression. Over the years, the role of the Firefighter and the Fire Department has changed dramatically. Today's Fire Department can be better described as an Emergency Service Agency and the Firefighter as a Damage Control Specialist.

The Firefighter in the Belgrade City/Rural Fire District still fights fire, but the objective is not only to put out a fire, but to leave a fire building with as little overall damage as possible. This can be translated into "Customer Service". The fact remains that a bucket of water will extinguish as much fire today as it did in the past, but today's well-trained Firefighter can more efficiently apply that bucket in less time and therefore increase the value of the same quantity of water.

Modern Firefighters are aware of water damage as well as fire damage. Holes are patched before a fire scene is vacated so weather will not add to overall damage. The Firefighter has also learned ways of forcible entry that leave the least amount of damage.

As an Emergency Service Agency, the responses of your Fire District go well beyond fire fighting. Over 50% of the calls handled by the Belgrade City/Rural Fire District were for emergencies other than fire.

Much of our time is spent training and responding to other emergencies like Medical Calls, Motor Vehicle Crashes and Hazardous Materials Incidents. These emergencies require additional specialized training and equipment to assist and support the people involved. These specialized services assist our citizens and visitors on a daily basis. Without our intervention, tragedy or near tragedy would certainly exist.

The general public has come to realize the value of the Firefighter in a variety of emergency situations that call for controlled and intelligent action, often in life and death situations. As such, the public calls upon the Fire Service any time they are faced with a situation they feel they cannot handle. While to the well-trained Firefighter it may seem that the solution to the emergency problems is obvious and simple, we must remember that the general public does not have the background and training of today's emergency responder.

One of the most valuable services we provide is in the area of awareness, education, code management and prevention. As we become experts in extinguishing fires, we automatically develop an extensive knowledge of how fires start. The fire that we take the most satisfaction in putting out is the one we prevented. It is the internal values of the Belgrade City/Rural Fire District that all members take an active interest in promoting fire prevention and safety.