San Antonio Fire Department

San Antonio Fire Department

SAFD CLASS 1 LOGO
Operational area
Country	United States
State	Texas
City	San Antonio
Agency overview
Established	June 6, 1854 (1854-06-06)
Annual calls	203,309 (2019)
Employees	~1,800 (2019)
Annual budget	$318,600,000 (2019)
Staffing	Career
Fire chief	Charles N. Hood
EMS level	ALS
IAFF	624
Facilities and equipment
Battalions	8 (7 Firefighting Battalions, 1 Special Operations Battalion)
Stations	54 Fire Stations
Engines	54 Engine Companies
Trucks	21 Truck Companies
Platforms	10 Platform Trucks
Squads	22 Squad Companies
Rescues	2 Rescue Units
Ambulances	35 Ambulances
Tenders	4 Tanker Trucks
HAZMAT	2 Hazardous Materials Units
Airport crash	7 Crash Units
Wildland	11 Wildland Units
Rescue boats	2 Rescue Boats
Light and air	4 Light and Air Units
Website
Official website
IAFF website

The San Antonio Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of San Antonio, Texas. The department is the third largest fire department (by number of personnel) in the state of Texas. With over 1,800 members, the SAFD is responsible for a population of over 1.4 million people spread across 408 square miles (1,060 km²).

The San Antonio Fire Department is an internationally accredited agency with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) and holds an Insurance Services Office (ISO) Public Protection Classification Class 1 rating. The department operates teams specializing in technical rescue, urban search and rescue, hazardous materials, aircraft rescue and firefighting, bike medics, incident management team, SWAT medic, and wildland firefighting

The San Antonio Fire Department is also involved heavily with the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Texas Task Force 1, abbreviated TX-TF1, to function as one of two state urban search and rescue (USAR) teams in the State of Texas. It is managed by the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service in College Station, Texas.

History

The department got its start on June 6, 1854, when a group of 20 San Antonians met to organize an all volunteer fire department. The company, initially called the Ben Milam Fire Company No. 1, consisted only of a bucket brigade. In 1856 the first hand pumped fire engine and hose real was purchased. On February 8, 1858, Fire Company No. 1 received its official charter from state naming it “The Fire Company of the City of San Antonio."

On December 22, 1859, the Alamo Fire Association No. 2 was placed in service after the Ben Milam Fire Company was deemed too small to handle major fires in city of greater than 8,000 residents. Fire Company No. 2 operated on the Eastside of the river. Alamo No. 2 was chartered by the state on February 11, 1860 and was the first fire company in the city to receive a horse dawn steamer.

During the American Civil War, fire protection was provided by slaves and the Confederate Army leading to the founding of the Colored Fire Companies in 1865 and 1866. Fire Company No. 3 and Fire Company No. 4 received zero funding from the city while providing fire protection to the city with nothing but hand pumps and buckets. Both fire companies were disbanded by 1881.

After the Civil War, a need for additional fire companies and capabilities was recognized. The San Antonio Turn Verein Athletic Club organized the 5th Fire Company which was charted the following year as the Turner Hook & Ladder Company.

Over the course of several years, fire companies continued to grow and new equipment began to be purchased. By 1873, the city funded horses and paid drivers to haul the steam pumper to the scene of fires. In the spring of 1878, the city officially founded the San Antonio Volunteer Fire Department.

As the city of San Antonio continued to expand and grow, so did the volunteer fire companies. During the early 1880s, three new fire companies were established. The first was the Second Ward Hose Company which was founded on April 14, 1883. The Sunset Hose Company No. 1 was established in early 1885 then on October 16, 1885, the Mission Hose Company No. 4 was formed.

In March 1891, the department transitioned to a paid department to keep up with the growing city. "San Antonio Fire Department History". MT Publishing. January 1, 2011. p. 128. ISBN 978-1-934-72960-1.

Stations and apparatus

The San Antonio Fire Department operates out of 54 stations strategically placed across the city. Below is a listing of all stations and their assigned apparatus. Eight Battalion Chiefs oversee day-to-day operations for the city’s 54 firehouses with a Fire Shift Commander overseeing the eight BC's each shift. There is a Medic Shift Commander that is responsible for overseeing the six Medical Officers. Each Medical Officer (MOF) is responsible for overseeing five to six Medic units and supporting their daily operations. Battalion Chief 8 is the “Special Operations Command” (SOC) Battalion Chief and is responsible for overseeing operations for the Technical Rescue, Hazardous Materials, Wildland/Urban Interface,Hazardous Materials Teams and other teams while Medic Officer 6 is the SOC MOF who is responsible for overseeing Medic 1 and Medic 45; the two Medical Special Operations Unit (MSOU) units in the city.

Fire Station Number	Address	Engine Company	Platform Company or Ladder Company	Medic Unit	Squad Unit	Special Units	Command Units
1	515 N. Cherry	Engine 1	Platform 1	Medic 1 (SOC)	Squad 1	HazMat 1, Spill 1	Fire Shift Commander(4–5–0) Medic Shift Commander (8–5–0)
2	601 Gillette Blvd.	Engine 2	Ladder 2	Medic 2	Squad 2
3	1425 E. Commerce St.	Engine 3
4	1430 N. St. Mary's St.	Engine 4		Peak Medic 4
5	1011 Mason Street	Engine 5		Medic 5
6	503 W. Russell Place	Engine 6	Ladder 6	Medic 6	Squad 6
7	1414 S. St. Mary's Street	Engine 7		Medic 7		Mobile Air Compressor 7, Fire Investigator 1, Fire Investigator 2
8	619 S. Hamilton Ave.	Engine 8	Ladder 8	Medic 8	Squad 8		Battalion Chief 1
9	649 Delmar Street	Engine 9	Ladder 9	Medic 9	Squad 9		Battalion Chief 6
10	1107 Culebra Road	Engine 10		Medic 10
11	610 S. Frio St.	Engine 11	Platform 11	Peak Medic 11	Squad 11	Heavy Rescue 11, Collapse 11, Boat 1, Boat 2
12	103 Arts & Crafts Way	Engine 12
13	3203 S. Presa St.	Engine 13		Medic 13
14	2515 Thousand Oaks Dr.	Engine 14	Platform 14	Medic 14	Squad 14	Hose Tender 14
15	3150 Ruiz St.	Engine 15		Medic 15			Medic Officer 1
16	2110 Nogalitos St.	Engine 16		Medic 16			Medic Officer 5
17	8545 Jones Maltsberger Rd.	Engine 17	Platform 17	Medic 17	Squad 17
18	1463 S. W.W. White Rd.	Engine 18	Platform 18	Medic 18	Squad 18
19	2307 Vance Jackson Rd.	Engine 19		Medic 19	MIH 19		Medic Officer 6 Battalion Chief 8 (SOC)
20	3347 S. W.W. White Rd.	Engine 20		Peak Medic 20		Brush Truck 20
21	5537 S. Flores St.	Engine 21		Peak Medic 21
22	Stinson Municipal Airport	Engine 22		Medic 22		Brush Truck 22, Crash Truck 22
23	San Antonio International Airport				Rescue 5	Rescue 1, Rescue 2, Rescue 3, Rescue 4, Rescue 6, Rescue 7, Rescue 8
24	1940 Austin Highway	Engine 24		Medic 24
25	1038 New Laredo Highway	Engine 25		Medic 25		Water Tanker 25	Battalion Chief 2
26	4140 Culebra Rd.	Engine 26		Peak Medic 26		Mobile Air Compressor 26
27	1518 Hillcrest Dr.	Engine 27 Engine 23		Medic 27	Squad 99
28	15 Burwood Ln.	Engine 28		Medic 28		Safety Officer
29	827 Hot Wells Blvd.	Engine 29	Ladder 29	Medic 29	Squad 29		Medic Officer 4
30	919 Gembler Rd.	Engine 30		Peak Medic 30		Brush Truck 30, Mobile Air Compressor 30
31	11802 West Avenue	Engine 31		Medic 31
32	2235 Babcock Road	Engine 32	Platform 32	Medic 32	Squad 32
33	2002 S. W. 36th St.	Engine 33	Ladder 33	Medic 33	Squad 33
34	15300 Babcock Rd.	Engine 34	Platform 34	Medic 34	Squad 34	HazMat 34, Spill 34
35	7038 Culebra Rd.	Engine 35	Platform 35	Medic 35	Squad 35
36	5826 Ray Ellison Blvd.	Engine 36	Ladder 36	Medic 36	Squad 36	Brush Truck 36
37	11011 Vance Jackson Rd.	Engine 37	Ladder 37	Medic 37	Squad 37
38	6000 Distribution	Engine 38	Platform 38	Medic 38	Squad 38		Battalion Chief 7
39	10750 Nacogdoches Rd.	Engine 39		Medic 39		Mobile Air Compressor 39	Medic Officer 3
40	14331 O'Connor Rd.	Engine 40	Ladder 40	Peak Medic 40	Squad 40	Brush Truck 40
41	9146 Dover Ridge	Engine 41	Ladder 41	Medic 41	Squad 41
42	10400 Horn Blvd.	Engine 42		Medic 42		Brush Truck 42	Medic Officer 2 Battalion Chief 3
43	2055 W. Bitters Rd	Engine 43		Medic 43		Water Tender 43, Brush Truck 43	Battalion Chief 5
44	1351 Horal Dr.	Engine 44		Medic 44	Squad 44
45	3415 Rogers Rd.	Engine 45		Medic 45 (SOC)		MSOU Truck	Battalion Chief 4
46	1165 Evans Rd.	Engine 46	Ladder 46	Medic 46	Squad 46
47	7240 Stonewall Bend	Engine 47				Water Tender 47 Hose Tender 47
48	18100 Bulverde Rd.	Engine 48		Peak Medic 48		Water Tender 48 Quartermaster 1 Quartermaster 2 Brush Truck 48
49	8710 Mystic Park	Engine 49
50	15000 Applewhite Rd.	Engine 50				Brush Truck 50
51	5040 Beckwith	Engine 51	Platform 51	Peak Medic 51	Squad 51	Heavy Rescue 51, ATV 1, ATV 2, Confined Space Trailer, Boat 3
52	10440 Quintana Rd.	Engine 52				Brush 52
53	14102 Donop Rd.	Engine 53				Water Tender 53, Brush Truck 53, Brush Truck 53–1, TIFMAS Strike Team
54	1365 N Foster Rd.	Engine 54				Brush Truck 54
Burnet Street Facility	502 Burnet St.					Mobile Command Center, STRAC TF-8 Multi-Paitent Transport Bus, MEDCAT MSOU Truck, Rehab Bus, Foam Trailer 1, Foam Trailer 2

Apparatus staffing

Engine Companies – 1 Officer (Captain or Lieutenant), 1 (Fire Apparatus Operator) F.A.O., 2 Firefighters

Ladder Companies/Platform Companies – 1 Officer (Captain or Lieutenant), 1 F.A.O., 2 Firefighters

Squad Company – 1 FF from the Engine Company and 1 FF from the Truck Company Squads only respond to BLS medical runs and public assists.

Medic Units – 2 Engineers/Paramedics

Medical Officer units – 1 EMS Lieutenant

Battalion Chief unit – 1 F.A.O. (Chiefs Aid) & Battalion Chief

Heavy Rescue Companies – 1 F.A.O., 1 Firefighter note: The Rescue Company responds to all Rescue Box Alarms or other emergencies with their Engine Company and Truck Company as a 3 piece response package. All members assigned to Stations 11 & 51 are Rescue Techs.

Haz-Mat & Spill response Companies – Cross staffed by the Engine Company and Truck Company assigned to their firehouse. note: All members assigned to Stations 1 & 34 are Haz-Mat Techs.

Mobile Air Compressor trucks, Brush Trucks, Water Tenders, & Hose Tenders – Cross staffed by one or two FF assigned to that firehouse.

Alarm assignments

Still alarms

A Still Alarm or more commonly called a Regular Alarm is the basic structure fire response protocol for the San Antonio Fire Department. The term "Still Alarm" came about upon the advent of telephones becoming more prevalent in reporting emergencies. The alarm office's register that received the signals from the actual fireboxes would remain "still" when someone reported a fire or emergency via telephone.The term is still used today out of tradition. A still alarm response is transmitted for most single family dwelling fires.

Box alarms

A Box Alarms or General Alarm is the other main assignment utilized by the San Antonio Fire Department. A Box Alarm is the standard protocol response for reported fires in high occupancy types, i.e. a hospital, nursing home, commercial building, strip mall, theater or other potentially high risk structure. If the fire is reported to have persons trapped or the Fire Alarm Office receives numerous calls for the same location, then an additional engine and truck are automatically added to the ticket by the Fire Alarm Office.

Multiple alarms

Higher-alarms for larger fires and more serious incidents are assigned as 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Alarm Assignments as upgrades of a "Still”, a "Box", or a "Working Fire". Each alarm level is signified by the level of alarms. The number "11" after the level of alarm is tradition of the bell and register system striking 11 blows onto the bell in the firehouse after whatever level of alarm the incident has been upgraded to, followed by the box number, that some have carried over into the modern era to continue the tradition.

Heat index

During the summer months and high heat days, the Fire Alarm Office will put out a citywide broadcast notifying all on duty personnel of the heat index level. Each level increases the response structure for the initial ticket and any subsequent alarm level at any working fires. During Level 1 heat index, work/rest cycles are implemented. During Level 2 heat index, an additional Engine Company, Truck Company and Battalion Chief are added. The increase in initial personnel is there to help with rehab and work/rest cycles.

Alarm Type	Alarm Level	Units Assigned
Still Alarm		3 Engine Companies, 1 Truck Company, 1 Battalion Chief Unit
Box Alarm		4 Engine Companies, 2 Truck Companies, 2 Battalion Chief Units
Box Alarm in a High-Rise Building	1st Alarm	5 Engine Companies, 3 Truck Companies, 2 Battalion Chief Units, Fire Shift Commander Unit, Medic Unit, Medical Officer Unit, Shift Safety Officer Unit, Mobile Air Compressor Truck, Fire Investigators
1–11	1st Alarm	5 Engine Companies, 3 Truck Companies, 2 Battalion Chief Units
Working Fire Assignment		Medic Unit, Medical Officer Unit, Shift Safety Officer Unit, Mobile Air Compressor Truck, Fire Investigators
2–11	2nd Alarm Upgrade	4 Engine Companies, 2 Truck Companies, 1 Heavy Rescue Company (Rescue company consists of an Engine Company, Platform-Ladder and Heavy Rescue) 2 Battalion Chief Units, Medic Unit, Medical Officer Unit, Mobile Command Center, Mobile Air Compressor Truck, Rehab Bus
3–11	3rd Alarm Upgrade	4 Engine Companies, 2 Truck Companies, 1 Heavy Rescue Company (Rescue company consists of an Engine, Platform-Ladder and Heavy Rescue) 2 Battalion Chief Units
4–11 +	4th Alarm Upgrade +	3 Engine Companies, 1 Truck Company, special call support units

Notable incidents

February 18, 2021 – TPC Parkway Fire – 5th alarm fire at a five-story apartment building. SAFD responded mutual aid to assist the Bexar-Bulverde Fire Department. Fire crews were hampered by a lack of water due to the 2021 winter storms.

January 30, 2019 – Galm Road Rollover – First time low titer O + whole blood (LTOWB) was used successfully for a traumatic arrest in the field.

May 18, 2018 – Ingram Square Fire – 4th alarm fire in a CrossFit gym inside a strip mall that resulted in the Line of Duty Death of Firefighter Scott Deem and injured two other firefighters. The fire was ruled an arson fire.

November 5, 2017 – Sutherland Springs church shooting – STRAC EMTF-8 Ambus and Medical Task Force were deployed and responded to the church to assist with transportation. The Crisis Response Team also responded and provided peer support to the numerous responding agencies and families.

December 28, 2014 – Wedgewood Fire – 3rd Alarm fire at a high-rise senior living facility in Castle Hills, Texas. Five People were killed and 18 others injured after a fire broke out on the third floor. San Antonio Fire responded mutual aid to assist. A Medical Task Force was also dispatched to assist in relocating the dozens of rescued senior citizens.