Presidio Fire Department
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Established in 1917, the Presidio Fire Department provides primary emergency response to the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, Fort Mason, Aquatic Park, and the Presidio of San Francisco.
The Presidio Fire Department Is the only full time fire department within the National Park Service and is an integral part of The Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Division of Visitor Protection. The Presidio Fire Department currently operates two Fire Stations with Fire Station 1 on the Presidio of San Francisco's Main Post and Fire Station 2 located in the Marin Headlands at Fort Cronkhite. The Presidio Fire Department responds to approximately 1611 emergency calls per year, ranging from structure fires to vehicle accidents and special operations including technical rescues.
In 2007, the Presidio Fire Department was credited with saving the Warming Hut, a coffee shop and bookstore operated by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and is located on the west end of Crissy Field. The Warming Hut was ignited by an adjacent vehicle fire.
The Presidio Fire Station in 1929.
History of the Presidio Fire Department
In the late 1800s, Presidio soldiers gained notoriety for fighting wild fires in California’s National Parks. After the 1906 earthquake, Presidio troops came to the assistance San Francisco during the fire that followed, eventually stopping it at a firebreak that they dynamited along Van Ness Avenue. However, the army received much criticism from city residents, who claimed the dynamiting operations were disorganized and people were removed from their houses long before the fire was a threat.
Within the Presidio, the army was plagued by fires in the old wooden buildings, many of which were more than 50 years old, had flammable roofs and open, coal-burning fireplaces with defective flues. In addition, the Presidio had no professionally trained firefighters and lacked a good fire prevention plan.
A Catalyst for Change
A series of fatal fires at the Presidio in the early 1900s culminated in the notorious Pershing fire of 1915. This fire killed four members of General John Pershing’s family. Mrs. Pershing, the daughter of Senator Francis E. Warren of Wyoming, and three of the four Pershing children suffocated in the early morning hours after coal from an unattended dining room fireplace fell to the floor, leading to a quick-spreading fire in the old wooden house.
The Fire Department Is Established
After the Pershing fire, Senator Warren led a congressional mandate for improved fire fighting resources at the Presidio. At the same time, San Francisco Fire Chief Thomas Murphy recommended establishing a permanent fire company at the Presidio. Based on Chief Murphy’s recommendations and encouraged by an embarrassed U. S. Government, the army built a fire station in 1917. The new Presidio Fire Station was the first on any U.S. Army post to house a permanent fire company with trained firefighters.
Presidio Firefighters to the Rescue
Response to the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake showed how much the Presidio Fire Department had changed since the early years. Firefighters from the department proved it to be a well-trained and effective “first response” organization. A mutual response agreement – not used since the 1906 earthquake – between the army and the San Francisco allowed the city to request Presidio Fire Department support for a house fire in the Marina. The Presidio crew was first to reach the fire at Beach and Divisadero. Actions taken by the Presidio Department at that time prompted commendations from Congresswoman Barbara Boxer, the Marina Neighborhood Organization, and the Phoenix Society, a highly regarded firefighters’ organization.
A National Park Service First
Fire department paramedics at work In 1994, management of the Presidio was transferred from the Department of Defense to the Department of the Interior. At that time, the Presidio Fire Department became the only National Park Service fire department to be staffed 24 hours a day. The National Park Service has focused on a new role for the modern firefighter, that of a well-trained emergency paramedic. The importance of this expanded role for firefighters is evident in that 90 percent of emergency calls are for paramedic units, making the Presidio Fire Department a vital “first response” station for the Presidio community.
The Fire Station Restored
The Presidio Fire Station was recently rehabilitated to bring it up to earthquake code, and to enlarge it to accommodate modern fire fighting equipment. Many of the original features of the historic 1917 structure were restored, such as the historic wood windows and sectional apparatus bay doors. Non-historic additions were removed, and a new wing compatible with the original building architecture was added. Finally, elements of the historic landscape were brought back to the site, which is very prominent to visitors arriving at the Main Post.
