| Loudoun County Fire & Rescue |
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| Motto: "Teamwork. Integrity. Professionalism. Service." [1] |
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| Established | 1863 {origins go back to early 1800s} |
| Staffing | Volunteer and Career |
| Strength | 1,500 Volunteers and 500 Career (Firefighters and EMTs) |
| Battalions | 3 |
| Stations | 23 |
| EMS Level | CFR-ALS |
| Fire chief | Chief of the Department Keith Brower, Jr. |
The Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Department (LCFR) or the Department of Fire, Rescue & Emergency Management has the responsibility of protecting the citizens and property of the towns, villages, and suburbs of Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, from fires and fire hazards, providing emergency medical services, and technical rescue, including Hazardous Materials, Mass Casuality Incidents, environmental dangers and more. The department's headquarters are in Leesburg.[2]
LCFR, one of the largest fire departments in Virginia, has approximately 1,500 volunteers and 500 career staff that make up its firefighters, emergency medical technicians (EMT), paramedics and other emergency responders.[3] LCFR uses a combined system to help respond to a diverse population spread throughout a suburban and rural county. Units can respond to building types that range from wood-frame single family homes to high-rise structures, bridges and tunnels, large parks and wooded areas that can give rise to major brush fires, as well as large stretches of forest and mountains, such as the Blue Ridge Mountains, in addition to metro and bus lines. LCFR provides care for a very large and diverse area, responding from stations scattered strategically throughout the county.
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Located 25 miles (40 km) from Washington, D.C., Loudoun County is 517 square miles (1,300 km2) in area and contains seven incorporated Towns: Hamilton, Hillsboro, Leesburg, Lovettsville, Middleburg, Purcellville, and Round Hill. Loudoun County is a member of both the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) and the National Capital Region.
Loudoun is widely known for its beautiful scenery, rich history, and strong sense of community. As the home of Washington Dulles International Airport and America Online, the County has established a reputation as an international center for technology, communications, and transportation. The County also enjoys a reputation for high-quality services, particularly its educational system.
Since 2000, Loudoun’s population has increased by over 60 percent to 279,082,1 making Loudoun the fifth-fastest growing county in the nation.2 The County’s population growth has been accompanied by prosperity. In 2007, Loudoun had the nation’s highest median household income at $107,207.3
The County is governed by a nine-member Board of Supervisors. The Chairman of the Board of Supervisors is elected by the voters at large; the other eight supervisors are elected by district. All nine members serve concurrent terms of four years. The Board of Supervisors appoints the County Administrator, who directs and supervises the day-to-day operations of all County departments and agencies.
LCFR uses a combination system, with career employees and volunteer members, to provide fire, rescue, and emergency medical services (EMS) to its citizens.
Throughout the 1980s and much of the 1990s, Loudoun’s fire/rescue services were provided by volunteers supplemented by career Firefighter/Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). Over time, increased demand for service coupled with fewer volunteers available during daytime hours necessitated hiring additional career personnel.
Between Fiscal Year (FY) 93 and FY09, the number of career personnel has grown from 56.95 Full-Time Equivalent Employees (FTEs) to 504.01 FTEs.4 The volunteer component of the System comprises an estimated 1,476 total volunteers, approximately 770 of whom are active either operationally and/or administratively. Both of these groups see continous, steady growth in terms of numbers and operational members.
At the head of the Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Department is Chief Keith Brower, who came to the position after Chief Joseph Pozzo left to head Volusia County Fire Services, in Volusia County, Florida in 2010. Under Chief Brower are six Deputy Chiefs, each in charge of a department, Volunteer Program Manager Karen McQuaid, and then the departments of Professional Standards and the Office of Emergency Management.
On Friday 11/12/2010, it was announced that Interim Chief Brower had been selected to permanently replace former Chief Pozzo as Chief of LCFR. Chief Brower was selected over approximately forty other applicants that had applied to the nation-wide search to replace Chief Pozzo.[4]
Within LCFR, there are six Deputy Chiefs (DCs), who are each in charge of multiple departments, sections, programs, or endeavors. These six Deputy Chiefs are responsible for, respectively:
Each Deputy Chief of each department has officers or Battalion Chiefs under them tasked with running multiple programs or sections.
While each volunteer company falls under the Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Department, each is largely responsible for its own administration and operation. LCFR provides support for volunteer companies in terms of financial support, training, protocols, and legal support. While many companies often have the term "Department" in their name, such Ashburn Volunteer Fire-Rescue Department, the correct term for these organizations would be "Company", to distinguish them from the overall LCFR Department.
Each volunteer company draws its members from the local community. While most volunteers join the company in their area, it is common for some members to run at different companies, depending on that individuals schedule, interests, or personality as well as the membership options offered by the individual company.
The membership of volunteer companies in the LCFR system are usually headed by a Board of Directors. Sitting on the board will be members of the community as well as senior officers from the company. Under the BOD, are the two branches of a volunteer company, the Administrative side and the Operations side. At the head of each wing are the President and Fire/Rescue Chief, respectively. The President's Administrative side will see to the day-to-day functioning of the company, finances, support, and paperwork. Under the President are usually a Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Committee Directors, and a Trial Board. The Operations wing staff apparatus, respond to emergencies, train, and are largely the public face of a company. Under the Fire or Rescue Chief, depending on the nature and size of the company, there will be an Assistant Chief, Deputy Chiefs, Captains, Lieutenants, Sergeants, Engineers, Crew Chiefs (also called Officers/Attendants-in-charge), and then the Firefighters and EMTs. The number, and type, of officers in a company depends largely on its size, with a small company having as few as five operational officers (not counting Crew Chiefs) and four administrative officers, or as many as fifteen officers in a larger company (not including Crew Chiefs). For example, Purcellville Volunteer Fire Company has one chief, one assistant chief, but two captains and two lieutenants, but neither deputy chiefs nor sergeants. However, for contrast, Leesburg Volunteer Fire Company has three captains and six lieutenants.
Currently, with the exceptions of Purcellville Rescue (CO. 14) and Sterling Rescue (CO. 15/25) and the stations that maintain 24/7 career staff, every company in LCFR is split between career staff during the day (0600-1800) and volunteer staff during the night (1800-0600), with weekend coverage varying depending on company. For instance, Lovettsville Fire & Rescue (CO. 12) maintains 24/7 coverage during the weekend, while Purcellville Fire (CO. 2) continues the career/volunteer split shift throughout the entire week, including the weekend.
While many stations may have career staffing during the day, this does not preclude volunteers from staffing a second or third out piece. It is also not uncommon for volunteers to come from home or work to staff a second or third out unit if a major incident is dispatched that requires additional apparatus.
The Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Department helps protects an area as far east as Fairfax County, west to the Blue Ridge Mountains, north to the Potomac River and Frederick County, MD, and south to Route 50.
| Station | Location | Fire Units | EMS Units | Other | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine | Truck | Tanker | Squad/Rescue | Ambulance | |||
| Station 601 | Leesburg | CC,CU,HM,U | |||||
| Station 602 | Purcellville | ER,E | TL | K | BC,BU,J,S | ||
| Station 603 | Middleburg | E,W | K | A(2) | BU | ||
| Station 604 | Round Hill | E,ER | K,RK | A(2) | BU,C | ||
| Station 605 | Hamilton | E,RE,W | K | BU,CC,U | |||
| Station 606 | Ashburn | E,W | TL,T | A(3) | BU,C,CU | ||
| Station 607 | Aldie | E | K | HR | A | BU,S,U | |
| Station 608 | Philomont | W,E | K,RK | BU,C(2) | |||
| Station 609 | Arcola-Pleasant Valley | E,ER | A(2) | BU,C,CC,J,S,SU | |||
| Station 610 | Lucketts | E,ER | K,RK | A | BU | ||
| Station 611 | Sterling Park | E,W | TL | CU,Q,BU | |||
| Station 612 | Lovettsville | E,W | K | MR | A(2) | C(2),J | |
| Station 613 | Leesburg | HR | A(5) | BT,U,WU,CU | |||
| Station 614 | Purcellville | A(3) | C(3),MCSU | ||||
| Station 615 | Sterling Park | HR | A(4) | C,S,BT,CC,WU,G | |||
| Station 616 | Neersville | E | K | A | BU | ||
| Station 617 | Hamilton | HR,MR | A(2) | C(3),WU | |||
| Station 618 | Cascades | E | K | HS,Q,CC,S | |||
| Station 619 | Dulles South Riding | E | TL | A(1) | BC,HM,HMS | ||
| Station 620 | Leesburg | E,W | TI,T | K | CC,HM,J | ||
| Station 621 | Mount Weather | E | T | A(2) | BU, HM, SU(3) | ||
| Station 622 | Lansdowne | E,RE | A | BC | |||
| Station 623 | Moorefield | E | K | A(2) | MAU, MAB | ||
| Station 624(F) | Dulles | ||||||
| Station 625 | Cascades | TR | A(3) | C,S,U,MCI,WU(2) | |||
| Station 626(F) | Brambleton | ||||||
| Station 627(F) | Kirkpatrick Farms | ||||||
| Station 628(F) | Oatlands | ||||||
| Station 635(F) | Dulles | ||||||
| Station 690/699 | LCFR Headquarters & Training Center | E(2) | T | HR* | A | BC(2),C,G(2),MCI,SO, | |
| Red Rum Warehouse | Red Rum Drive, Ashburn | E | A(2) | LU | |||
| Unit Types:
A(#)=Ambulance (number of units), BC=Career Battalion Chief housed at this station, BT=Bike Team, BU=Brush Unit, C=Chase Vehicle (BLS/ALS), CC=Command Chase, CU=Canteen Unit, E=Engine, G=Gator, HR=Heavy Rescue, HM=HazMat Unit, HMS=HazMat Support, J=Jeep, K=Tanker, LU=Logistics Unit MAU=Mobile Air Unit, MAB=Mobile Ambulance Bus, MCI=Mass Casualty Incident Trailer, MCSU=Mass Casualty Supply/Support Unit, MR=Medium Rescue, Q=Quint, ER=Rescue Engine, RE=Reserve Engine, RK=Reserve Tanker, S=SERV, SO=Safety Officer, SU=Support Unit, T=Truck, TI=Tiller, TL=Tower Ladder, TR=Technical Rescue, U=Utility, W=Wagon, WU=Water Unit (boat,jetski,etc). (F)=Future Station
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Leesburg Volunteer Fire Company occupies two locations in Leesburg. Company 1 is located at 215 W. Loudoun Street, and houses support units and retired apparatus for LVFC. Company 20 is the active arm of LVFC and runs out of the station located on Plaza Street next to the Leesburg Police station. However, unit numbering is not totally indicative of station—for instance, the tiller stationed at 20 was long called Truck 601, however, due to the new backup truck that was purchased, it is now called Truck 620.
The Purcellville Volunteer Fire Company, nicknamed "The Deuce," was formed in the early 20th century. At the time, two hand-drawn chemical wagons were placed in service. In 1923, PVFD received its charter and the era of motorized fire apparatus began. PVFC recently moved into a new station on the north end of Purcellville with PVRS Co. 14. Company 2 has two alternating shifts of LCFR career staff, A and B shift, during the day from 0600 to 1800, and volunteer crews at night from 1800-0600.
When the Middleburg Volunteer Fire Department was incorporated in 1936, it had one fire truck and covered the Route 50 corridor from the top of Paris Mountain to Chantilly. In the early 1950s Co. 3 was given an ambulance and initiated emergency medical care, becoming fire and rescue. Relations between career & volunteers become strained in 2010, but career staff have recently returned to CO. 3.
The Round Hill Fire Department was started in the early 20th century. Its equipment consisted of a hand-pulled cart carrying several lengths of hose. The first fire alarm was sounded by clanging a big iron bell. In 1938, the Round Hill Volunteer Fire Dept. was formally organized. The first piece of equipment purchased was a used truck that had a water tank and pump mounted on it. Next, a siren and fire extinguishers were added. In 1949, the first ambulance was purchased. Round Hill relies largely on career staff now, with some volunteers at night & for events.
The Hamilton Volunteer Fire Department held its first organized meeting in July 1944, and a year later purchased its first fire truck. In January 1946, it moved into its firehouse which, with remodeling and additions, is still in use. HVFD has an attack pumper, a pumper/tanker, a brush truck and a light and air unit. It has a BLS non-transport license to provide EMS assistance and over a dozen of its average of 30 active members are qualified 1st Responders or EMTs. In 2000, HVFD and the Hamilton Volunteer Rescue Squad together purchased 10 acres (40,000 m2) of land to build the Hamilton Public Safety Center where both companies are housed. ALS 601 is also housed at station 5/17.
The Ashburn Volunteer Fire Department was started in 1947 after the tragic deaths of three children in a house fire. It was officially established in 1948, and its first piece of equipment was a 1927 American LaFrance pumper. The station was built in 1950, with expansions in 1963 and 1993. In 1991, Ashburn Volunteer Fire Department expanded its services and added its first ambulance. In 1996, it officially became the Ashburn Volunteer Fire-Rescue Department. In 2010 Station 22, Landsdowne, was opened. Station 22, across from Loudoun Hospital, is also home to several Loudoun Fire Marhsall & Loudoun Sheriff units—some of which will move once the new Brambleton Public Safety Center, the future home of LFMO, is completed.
The Aldie Volunteer Fire Department was established in 1955 and its first piece of fire apparatus, a used 1948 GMP fire engine, was purchased for $5,500. In 1956, Co. 7 purchased its first station, which was formerly a garage and service station, and bought a 1939 Ford fire engine. In 1971, Co 7. built a new station on the same property as the old fire station. In 2010, CO. 7 began operation of a county-owned heavy rescue vehicle. Formerly Rescue 603, Rescue 607 was repainted & re-equiped to be sent to Aldie. In 2011, Aldie will be receiving a brand new heavy rescue vehicle from Pierce Manufacturing. When that unit arrives, to be desginated Rescue 607, the current Rescue 607 will return to the county for refurbishing, before being stationed as a county reserve unit, Rescue 699, the first reserve rescue in the county.
The Philomont Volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1955 and was equipped with a used pumper and tanker provided by other fire stations. In 1956, PVFD got its first new pumper, and in 1968 it bought a 1,500 gallon tanker. In 1975 and 1994, two expansions we added to the station, adding a meeting hall and providing a total of seven bays to house the apparatus. Philomont relies largely on career staff now, with some volunteers.
The Arcola Pleasant Valley Volunteer Fire Department was formed in 1957. A station was built and its first piece of fire equipment, a 1,250 gal. Tanker truck, was purchased through the Civil Defense for $75.00. In the 1960s, the first ambulance was put in service and the Ladies Auxiliary was formed. During Hurricane Agnes in the 1970s, 200 people were sheltered and fed at Station 9. The 1980s and 1990s saw an addition built onto the station, and a recruitment program was started to help prepare for future growth. on 9/29/11, ground was broken for the new Brambleton Public Safety Center, which will house career/volunteer staffing from CO. 9 as well as the headquarters for the Loudoun County Fire Marshall's Office.
The Lucketts Volunteer Fire Department was established in 1960 with one fire truck and a two-bay firehouse. A few members of the community recognized the need to start a local fire company, and prior to the company’s establishment, a fire truck was purchased and kept at a local farm. Dispatch called the Chief’s home and his wife called local members by phone to tell them of an emergency. The fire truck was brought to the scene while members were en route. Today, Lucketts' original firehouse provides seven bays to house its apparatus. Lucketts is almost completely career staffed. Home of the LCFR Swiftwater team.
The Sterling Park Volunteer Fire Department started in 1966 with two old, used pumpers and a tanker in a barn on Holly Ave. By 1998 they had become the Sterling Volunteer Fire Company and expanded to two stations. The station in Sterling Park, Station 11, is shared with the Sterling Volunteer Rescue Squad (as Station 15) and houses an engine, ladder tower, quint, and a canteen unit. A second station, Station 18, was built in Sugarland Run and housed a single engine, and also served as Station 25 for SVRS. Construction of a new Station 18 (and 25) in Cascades was completed in 1997. The Cascades station houses an engine, quint, and tanker. The old station 18 is used by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office and sometimes houses reserve apparatus. Plans are underway to open a third station, station number 24 (Station 35 for SVRS) along the Route 28 corridor.
The Lovettsville Rescue Squad received it charter in 1966. In 1967, a fire company was begun and combined with the rescue squad to form one company in 1968. The current building was erected in 1974 and has had two subsequent additions built. It has split operations between career & volunteers.
On September 12, 1952, 12 men throughout the county started the first rescue squad in Loudoun County, the Loudoun County Volunteer Rescue Squad. Until funds could be raised to purchase their own vehicle, Albert Laycock donated his Ford Ranch Wagon for their first response unit. The first official squad vehicle purchased was a '51 Chevrolet truck with a utility bed made to carry patients. Over the years, units were housed in Purcellville, Hamilton and Leesburg until other squads could be formed. The squad building on Catoctin Circle was constructed in 1975.
The Purcellville Volunteer Rescue Squad has been in existence since 1969. PVRS currently boasts three ambulances, a Basic Life Support chase vehicle, an Advanced Life Support chase vehicle, and a second ALS chase vehicle on loan from the county (ALS 690). CO. 14 is the home of the Mass Casuality Support Unit (MCSU 614—similar in size & shape to MR 617), on loan from LCFR & the only vehicle of its type in the county (note: the text on the vehicle's side reads "Medical Care Support Unit", though it is still referenced & dispatched as the Mass Casualty Support Unit). Having moved into a brand new facility in the summer of 2009, shared with PVFC CO. 2, PVRS maintains an all-volunteer rescue squad and is one of two companies (Sterling Rescue is the other) in LCFR to maintain 24/7 volunteer staffing.
Founded in 1964, the Sterling Volunteer Rescue Squad was created as a "Jaycees" project in a newly developed planned community in Eastern Loudoun County. Following a tragic pedestrian accident; in which bystanders had to wait for an ambulance from Loudoun Rescue which was then headquartered in Hamilton, VA. The first station was co-located with the Library in the 200 block of N. Sterling Blvd, in 1968 a Crash Truck was purchased under a highway safety grant, that unit (Sterling 1) was housed at the Shell gas station in Sterling Park. A year earlier the membership of Sterling Rescue would be active in forming the Sterling Vol. Fire Company. In the early 1970s, both Sterling Rescue and the Sterling Fire Company would work together to build its first station to house both organizations in Sterling Park. Both organizations continue to be independent cooperations, co-located in the same stations. Later, that same decade, Sterling Rescue would be instrumental in implementing Advance Life Support care within the Loudoun County system.
Recognizing response delays and an increasing call volume in the communities north of Route 7,now known as Potomac Falls, members living in that area would respond to emergencies in an old ambulance parked in their driveway. Later a substation was built to provided an area to garage the ambulance in the Sugarland community. December,1997 the substation was replaced with a larger station which was built in the Cascades community. The Sugarland facility still remains but is used for the storage of equipment and supplies, houses the department's Special Events Team and is used by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office for their community policing activities.
Sterling Rescue provides both Emergency Medical care and transport (ALS/BLS), and Rescue operations throughout Eastern Loudoun County and the region. Sterling Rescue is home of one of Virginia's Office of EMS's, Disaster Task Force (NOVA TF-8) which has been deployed on several events throughout the Commonwealth. Sterling Rescue has received recognition for its contributions by the Loudoun County government, Northern Virginia EMS Council, Virginia Office of EMS, recipient of the "1999 Governor's Award for Agency of the Year", and EMS Magizine's "2006 Best Volunteer EMS Agency".
In 2010, Sterling Rescue had over 7100 responses and its 160 volunteer members, staffing both stations, provided over a 107,000 hours of time to the community. To meet an ever increasing demand on services, plans are underway for the construction of a third station along Rt. 28 in the area of Dulles Towncenter Mall and is expected to be open in 2013.
Neersville Volunteer Fire and Rescue began in 1976 as a sub-station of Round Hill. It housed a borrowed ambulance in a neighbor's driveway until the community members built its community building to house the ambulance. Two years later it became the Neersville Volunteer Rescue Squad, and in July 1979 it became Neersville Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company. Neersville relies largely on career staff now, with some volunteers.
Establishing its roots in 1952 as Loudoun County’s first rescue squad, the members of the Hamilton community were volunteering their time and skills long before Station 17 was renamed in 1979. The Hamilton Volunteer Rescue Squad serves the town of Hamilton and its surrounding areas. In addition to BLS & ALS units, CO. 17 also operates a boat unit, as well as a heavy rescue unit, Rescue 617, which is often cross-staffed with CO. 5 personnel.
Constructed by the county, it houses both Fire-Rescue and a Sheriff’s substation. It began operation on May 7, 2007, with a grand opening in June 2007. The station is staffed 24/7 by LCFR staff with no volunteer participation. However, some of the apparatus is owned by the Arcola VFD. HazMat 619, the only HazMat response unit in Loudoun, not including HazMat support trailers, is stationed here.
Maintained by all-career staff, this company watches over the Mt. Weather area in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center. Company 21 is a LCFR company simply for operational sake, as the staffing is maintained by FEMA, and to respond to mutual aide calls, the units must be released by FEMA prior to response. Used primarily by LCFR for station fills in the western end of the county, such as Purcellville or Round Hill.
Originally the second Ashburn company Loudoun County took over when Ashburn moved into the new Landsdowne station 22. Originally stationed at the Red Rum Drive warehouse facility, LCFR opened a brand new station 23 in Moorefield in August, 2011. It is the second all career station in the county. Houses several specialty apparatus, including the Mobile Air Unit, used for SCBA cylinder refilling on significant incidents, and the ambulance bus.
Headquarters and Training Center for LCFR—nicknamed "The Rock". The main LCFR building is here, which includes ECC (dispatch), training rooms, Battalion Chief bunkrooms, and offices. Also on the grounds are the annex building (more training rooms), the High Bay (houses the Rock's gym, and several apparatus, and encompasses a four-story building for training), and the Burn and Extrication Pads for training. Stationed at LCFR HQ are many of the training & reserve apparatus, such as Engines 690,91,98,99, Truck 690, and multiple ambulances. Additionally, several career vehicles are stationed here, such as EMS 601 (EMS Battalion Chief), the Department Chief's chase, and more. Additionally, new units often come through the Rock for outfitting before being transferred to their home station. Once the new Rescue 607 arrives, old Rescue 607 may be stationed here as a county reserve rescue. Additionally, there are plans to purchase a second heavy rescue vehicle, which will either become a second reserve rescue, or will be placed at a new station, most likely the new 28/7 Sterling station.
LCFR also maintains additional apparatus and equipment storage at the Red Rum Drive Warehouse in Ashburn, VA. Originally the home of station 23, before the move to the new Moorefield station, the warehouse is now the home for many reserve and specialty apparatus and fleet maintenance operations.
[13] LCFR is currently in the works of planning and developing future stations for the department, all depending on community growth and need. Most of these departments would become substations of individual companies or all-career stations, with very few new, independent volunteer companies being created.
On December 1, 1974 TWA Flight 514, registration N54328, was a Boeing 727-231 en route from Indianapolis, Indiana, and Columbus, Ohio, to Washington Dulles International that crashed into Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center, Virginia. All 85 passengers and 7 crew members were killed.
On September 11, 2001, a team of five al-Qaeda affiliated hijackers took control of American Airlines Flight 77, en route from Washington Dulles International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport, and deliberately crashed it into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m. EDT as part of the September 11 attacks. All 64 people on the airliner were killed as were 125 people who were in the building. The impact of the plane severely damaged the structure of the building and caused its partial collapse.[15] Career and volunteer firefighter/rescue personnel responded to the Pentagon and also helped fill the stations in Fairfax County and Arlington County that had responded to the disaster.
On May 25, 2008 a significant fire occurred in a single-family home in Leesburg, Virginia. Over the course of the incident, seven Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Department personnel, both volunteer and career, were injured, with four receiving serious burns. The fire lead to a post-incident investigative report, and resulted in an investigative video and document and several department-wide changes to incident response strategies, protocols, equipment, and personnel assignments. Subsequently, a copy of the report, including video, can be found on the main LCFR webpage, & it is often referenced in county classes (e.g. the entirety of the video was shown three times during the Fall 2010 Firefighter I/II class).
The Loudoun County Emergency Communications Center serves as the county's public safety answering point for fire, rescue and police incidents, using the county's Enhanced-911 (E-911) system. The center operates 24 hours a day.
Emergency and non-emergency fire and rescue calls are processed and police-related calls are transferred to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
Each shift includes workers who are certified in various aspects of emergency medical dispatch and who meet the standards set by the national Association of Public Communications Officers.[17]
When a member of the public dials "911" they speak with an LCFR 911 operator who assigns the call to where it needs to go based on the information provided.
Each address in the city is assigned a box number, based on the closest street, special building or highway box. This gives the companies en route cross streets for the alarm. If there is also a street address given to the dispatchers, the responding apparatus will get this information in the firehouse, over the air, and via their mobile data terminals (computer aided dispatch - CAD) in the apparatus. At present there are several thousand physical street boxes in Loudoun County, with many additional special building boxes and highway boxes, as well as "dummy boxes" used for special response assignments. In addition there are airport crash boxes for Washington Dulles International Airport and other airports. When either box is sounded it brings an automatic second alarm (2-2) response of equipment, along with various special units.
Critical Information Dispatch System (CIDS, pronounced "sids") information is transmitted to units in the firehouse and en route is information that is collected on a building during inspections and by public input, which would have an impact on fire-fighting operations. Such things as:
This information is printed on the fire ticket and can be read by the dispatcher if requested. This information is also read automatically when a signal 10-75 (working fire) or higher signal is given or when the supervising dispatcher deems it is important for the units to have it before arrival at an incident.
LCFR apparatus are owned and maintained primarily by the individual volunteer companies that make up the department. While LCFR owns several pieces of apparatus for career staff and training, such as ambulances 698 and 699, engine 690, and some ALS chase vehicles, the actual day-to-day operation is handled by the volunteer companies, and the career staff that may run during the day at specific stations.
LCFR does not use any one system-wide color-scheme to designate apparatus used by the volunteer companies. While career maintained apparatus have a common scheme, such as white with red highlights for chase vehicles & heavy vehicles (Rescue 607 & HazMat 619, which has red & blue highlights instead of red & tan), or red with tan & white highlights for ambulances and engines, the vast majority of apparatus colors are chosen by the volunteer companies themselves. These colors may reflect the individual company's logo, a sense of aesthetics, practicality,[18] or a public community vote.
Every station is a little bit different in how they style their apparatus, or even what kind of apparatus they purchase, just like each engine or ambulance is unique to itself. For instance, Purcellville Fire apparatus are a yellow-green fluorescent color and Leesburg Fire use a Chicago-style black-on-red,[19] whereas Ashburn has white over bright yellow and Philomont has a classic "fire-engine red" all over.
LCFR Career personnel are represented by International Association of Fire Fighters Local 3756. The chapter was chartered in 1997, and now has 319 members, with representation across all shifts, divisions, battalions, and many ranks.[20]
Several members of the LCFR system are also members of Urban Search and Rescue Virginia Task Force 1,[21] a part of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.[22]
Loudoun County is home to a grassroots program, titled Volunteers: The Series that aims to highlight volunteer fire and rescue companies from around the world. The show has quickly developed a small following since its 2009 inception from all over the world, thanks to a marketing campaign, using video clips, a facebook page, and word of mouth, featuring companies and stations within the LCFR system.
While much of the series' fan base stems from the fire and rescue community, even if providers from other nations are fans, there are still many fans who simply wish to support the series and their local community.[23]
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