Overview

Approximately 80 people support the operations of the Fitchburg Fire Department: firefighters and fire officers, investigators, accountability and support team members, and an administrative services manager.

Each member falls into one of the following employment categories: career, paid-on-call, paid-on-premises, or intern.

Career Staff

Career staff are full-time employees of the City of Fitchburg who provide the core staffing of the on-duty response crews and are responsible for many additional duties such as: fire inspections, public education, maintenance of equipment, record keeping and numerous other administrative duties.

They work one of three schedules depending on their position:
  • Monday - Friday, 8a.m. - 5p.m.
  • A 24-hour shift (7a.m. - 7a.m.) every third day (24 hrs on, 48 hours off)
Those working 24-hour shifts are assigned to A Shift, B Shift or C Shift.

Paid-On-Call / Paid-On-Premises​


Paid-on-call (POC) and Paid-on-premises (POP) personnel are individuals who typically have other primary employment but are driven to give back to the community. They train with the Fitchburg Fire Department, work on shift as part of an on-duty crew, and are also expected to respond to staff additional apparatus when:
  • More than 1 piece of apparatus is dispatched for a call (structure fire or larger motor vehicle crash); 
  • Both on-duty crews are involved in emergency calls; or
  • A neighboring department is requesting mutual aid.

Interns


Interns are college students enrolled in the Fire Protection Technician program at Madison College. They live and work in one of the Fitchburg firehouses for up to three years. Each one is assigned to one of the three shifts (A, B, or C) and work as part of that on-duty crew, except during the school day. More information about the Intern Program is available here. 

Sponsorship


The Sponsorship Program is available for residents of the City of Fitchburg who are interested in serving their community but don't have any formal training in the fire service. Individuals who are approved to participate in this program are provided with everything they need to earn their State of WI Entry Level Firefighter, Firefighter I, and HazMat Operations certifications, including the personal protective gear, equipment, and textbooks. For more information, please email us at fire@fitchburgwi.gov.