Frequently Asked Questions

These "FAQ's" are meant to be informative and are not worded to be interpreted as policy.  Two categories of FAQ's are presented: Training FAQ's, and Certification FAQ's. Please scroll down to see the topic that most interests you.

 

Q: How many firefighters are there in Connecticut? (How many are volunteer? How many are career?)

A: There are about 13,401 firefighters in Connecticut.

  • About 4,738 of them are career firefighters.
  • About 8,337 are volunteer firefighters.
  • About 1,818 paid per call.
  • Statistics based upon a survey conducted by the Office of State Comptroller in December 2024 as part of a firefighter census and department mapping project.
Q: How do you arrive at these numbers?

A: Nobody is responsible for tracking firefighter statistics; there is not a central reporting agency. It is difficult to track the numbers, since firefighters can belong to more than one department. Also, individual fire departments define their active personnel differently.

Q. What is a career firefighter? Do volunteer firefighters get paid?

A: Career firefighters have full-time, paid, benefited jobs as firefighters. Volunteers are any other people who fight fires. They may receive no pay at all, be paid on an hourly or per-call basis. Volunteer firefighters typically have jobs and careers outside of firefighting. Also, many volunteer departments offer incentives such as property tax abatement and length of service (pension) award programs.

Q: How many career female firefighters are there in Connecticut?

A: Although very dated, a 2001 report from the organization Women in Fire Service, there are 62 women in 29 departments in CT., 1 engineer, 3 Lieutenants, 1 Deputy Chief. There are approximately 6,650 women in active career level structural firefighting throughout the U.S.

Q: Who oversees fire fighters in the state?

A: Fire protection, and the people who provide it, are local issues in the same way that street cleaning is a local issue. In other words, there is no legislatively mandated state director of street cleaners. Localities decide on their own fire protection services. The Legislature does regulate fire fighters’ pensions, worker compensation, voluntary training standards, etc.

Q: How many firefighters are there in the U.S.? (How many career, how many volunteer?)

A: According to estimates based on the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 2022 U.S. Fire Department Profile, there were approximately 1,041,200 firefighters in the U.S., both career and volunteer 

  • The information comes from the annual survey sent out to fire departments and a weighting formula used by NFPA in their estimate equation. In this survey, career firefighters were defined to include full-time firefighters regardless of assignments (e.g., suppression, prevention/inspection, administrative).
  • This survey defined career firefighters who work for public municipal fire departments; it does not include career firefighters who work for private fire brigades.
  • Of the total number of firefighters, 364,300 (35%) were career firefighters and 676,900 (65%) were volunteer firefighters.
  • In 2020, 89,600 firefighters were female (9%). Of the career firefighters, 17,200 were female. There were also 72,400 volunteer firefighters who were female.
  • Fifty percent of firefighters are between 30 and 49 years old.
  • There were 29,452 fire departments in the United States in 2020. Of these, 18% were all career or mostly career departments and protected 70% of the US population.
  • Nationwide, 37% of fire departments provided no emergency medical services, 46% provided basic life support (BLS), and 17% provided advanced life support (ALS).
Q. How many fire departments are there in Connecticut?

A: 300 fire departments in Connecticut. This figure includes municipal fire departments, fire districts, state agencies, tribal nations, and industrial fire departments.

Q. How many fire departments are there in the U.S.?

A: According to the NFPA’s 2022 report, there are an estimated 29,452 fire departments in the United States

  • 2,785 (9 percent) are comprised solely of career firefighters
  • 18,873 (64 percent) are comprised of all-volunteer firefighters.
  • 2,459 of the departments (8 percent) are mostly-career
  • 5,335 (18 percent) are mostly-volunteer firefighters.
Q: How do I become a firefighter in Connecticut?

A: Most of Connecticut’s 169 cities and towns establish their own requirements; check with your local fire department or municipal human resources (personnel) department. However, many departments want you to:

  • Be a high school graduate
  • Have a valid drivers license
  • Be able to use computers
  • Be healthy and in good physical condition (see CPAT section of web page)
  • If you are in high school, inquire about Fire Explorer, Junior, and Cadet programs. Many previous Fire Explorers have become firefighters in their communities
  • Take courses at Connecticut Fire Academy, state community colleges or the University of New Haven
  • Individuals interested in volunteering should contact the Commission on Fire Prevention and Control (860) 264-9231
Q: How can I become qualified to fight forest fires?

A: Meet the requirements of the state or federal agency doing the firefighting to get on a list of qualified people to be called up. You must take and pass a physical work capacity test. Check out the Wildland Training Information page at Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection.

  • Contact: Tom Trask
    Forest Protection, Supervisor DEEP, Forestry Division
    Bureau of Natural Resources
    Ph: 860-424-3325
    Email: Thomas.Trask@ct.gov
Q: How many emergency medical service providers are there in Connecticut?

A: Active EMS personnel statistics as of 2024 provided by the Connecticut Department of Public Health.

  • 7297 Emergency Medical Response 
  • 12,882 Emergency Medical Technician
  • 64 Advanced Emergency Medical Technician
  • 814 Emergency Medical Services-Instructor
  • 2862 Paramedic

 

 

4/2025

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