BRIEF DEPARTMENT HISTORY
Donalsonville Fire Department was established in the early 1900s. The first records start in 1922. The first firemen on the roster consisted of around 17 volunteers until 1960 when one fireman was hired to man a fire engine full time. The department was orginally funded by a portion of the street tax. In 1961 two additional firemen were hired. As the town grew and population and business increased, so did the staffing of the paid department, with 6 more positions being created in the 1970s. The paid department would be made up of nine firefighters from this time until around 2019 when additional positions were added bringing the total to ten paid firefighters covering an area of about four square miles and assisting county volunteers in covering Seminole County.
The current staffing for DFR consists of three administration positions: Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief/ Fire Marshall, and a Training Captain. We currently have one day-time firefighter works Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm, and 6 shift positions. A shift consists of one Lieutenant and one firefighter. There are currently three shifts who work 24 hours on duty at a time and 48 hours off. Any time additional help is needed on a shift county volunteers and off duty city personnel respond from wherever they are to help with emergencies.
Over the years, the way the department operates and handles calls has changed. In the early years, Donalsonville Fire had a hand cart as its first form of a fire apparatus. Firefighters would not have any type of motorized fire apparatus until 1937 when the city purchased a used 1927 Chevrolet fire truck from the city of Montezuma. This truck’s main purpose was to carry hose, ladders, tools and fire extinguishers to the scene. The truck was nicknamed "The Old Montezuma."
The city would not have its first fire engine until 1946 when a brand-new fire engine was purchased for one dollar from the Bainbridge Air Base war surplus. This fire truck would become Engine 2 and is still used by the Donalsonville Fire Rescue Department for parades and special details. Since the purchase of Engine 2 additional fire apparatus have been added. Donalsonville Fire has grown from a single-engine company to a multiple-engine company. DFR now houses two in-service engines, one training engine, one parade engine, a 100-foot aerial ladder truck, a Chief’s truck, and a Fire Marshall truck as well as a rescue truck that is jointly owned and operated by DFR and Seminole County Volunteers (SCVFR). Along with the city apparatus, DFR’s station also houses and helps maintain a small fleet of county vehicles consisting of two engines, a brush truck and a fire knocker that serves as a small tanker. For more information on our apparatus click here.
Emergency calls outside of Donalsonville are generally covered by volunteers, off duty city firefighters, and response from the two additional departments in the county, Iron City Volunteer Fire-Rescue and Spring Creek Volunteer Fire Dept. Over the years DFR has transitioned from focusing on fire protection response dept. to an all-hazards approach department. DFR responds to hundreds of calls a year that include motor vehicle accidents, structure fires, brush fires, hazardous materials calls, first responder calls (assisting EMS), Technical Rescue calls and more.
When not handling emergency calls, firefighters are constantly training, maintaining and testing emergency equipment, conducting public outreach, maintaining fire safety and prevention programs, conducting pre-fire plans, completing necessary reports and documentation needed for State Compliance and ISO standards, and of course housework and station maintenance since firefighters consider the fire station their home 1/3 of their working life.
The current staffing for DFR consists of three administration positions: Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief/ Fire Marshall, and a Training Captain. We currently have one day-time firefighter works Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm, and 6 shift positions. A shift consists of one Lieutenant and one firefighter. There are currently three shifts who work 24 hours on duty at a time and 48 hours off. Any time additional help is needed on a shift county volunteers and off duty city personnel respond from wherever they are to help with emergencies.
Over the years, the way the department operates and handles calls has changed. In the early years, Donalsonville Fire had a hand cart as its first form of a fire apparatus. Firefighters would not have any type of motorized fire apparatus until 1937 when the city purchased a used 1927 Chevrolet fire truck from the city of Montezuma. This truck’s main purpose was to carry hose, ladders, tools and fire extinguishers to the scene. The truck was nicknamed "The Old Montezuma."
The city would not have its first fire engine until 1946 when a brand-new fire engine was purchased for one dollar from the Bainbridge Air Base war surplus. This fire truck would become Engine 2 and is still used by the Donalsonville Fire Rescue Department for parades and special details. Since the purchase of Engine 2 additional fire apparatus have been added. Donalsonville Fire has grown from a single-engine company to a multiple-engine company. DFR now houses two in-service engines, one training engine, one parade engine, a 100-foot aerial ladder truck, a Chief’s truck, and a Fire Marshall truck as well as a rescue truck that is jointly owned and operated by DFR and Seminole County Volunteers (SCVFR). Along with the city apparatus, DFR’s station also houses and helps maintain a small fleet of county vehicles consisting of two engines, a brush truck and a fire knocker that serves as a small tanker. For more information on our apparatus click here.
Emergency calls outside of Donalsonville are generally covered by volunteers, off duty city firefighters, and response from the two additional departments in the county, Iron City Volunteer Fire-Rescue and Spring Creek Volunteer Fire Dept. Over the years DFR has transitioned from focusing on fire protection response dept. to an all-hazards approach department. DFR responds to hundreds of calls a year that include motor vehicle accidents, structure fires, brush fires, hazardous materials calls, first responder calls (assisting EMS), Technical Rescue calls and more.
When not handling emergency calls, firefighters are constantly training, maintaining and testing emergency equipment, conducting public outreach, maintaining fire safety and prevention programs, conducting pre-fire plans, completing necessary reports and documentation needed for State Compliance and ISO standards, and of course housework and station maintenance since firefighters consider the fire station their home 1/3 of their working life.