The Portland Airport Fire Department began in October of 1962. The fire department currently consists of 36 dedicated professionals. While qualified as traditional fire fighters, our "primary mission" is aircraft fire fighting. Fire department personnel work on 3 rotating shifts. These shifts are normally comprised of ten firefighters of which 3 are Paramedics, two officers (one Captain and one Lieutenant) and 3 Water Rescue qualified fire fighters. The "on-duty" work shift consists of working 24 hours, followed by the next 48 hours off. Personnel assigned to the training and inspections department work four, ten hour shifts per week. Shift changes occur at 0800 each morning.

Fire fighter applicants should have at least a high school education or the equivalent. Some personnel have had college education backgrounds and most have obtained specialized aircraft fire training through one of the branches of the military. Once hired or promoted, each individual undergoes a one-year probationary training period.

The fire department has well over $3,000,000.00 worth of emergency equipment. This includes four ARFF (Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting) trucks, one structural pumper (fire engine), an advanced life support unit, and a water rescue boat on the Columbia River. Each vehicle has a specific task pertaining to fire fighting.

While fighting a fire, our firefighters wear high-tech protective clothing of PBI, Kevlar, Nomex and Gortex along with a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). This totals about 50 pounds of extra weight and costs approximately thirteen thousand dollars.

The airport fire department has established mutual aid agreements with the City of Portland Fire and Rescue and the Oregon Air National Guard. This agreement along with the Metropolitan Emergency Preparedness Services has the ability to provide 40 pieces of emergency equipment and associated personnel to support the airport fire department in the case of a large scale emergency.

The airport fire department paramedics provide emergency medical services to airport tenants, employees and the traveling public. They are equipped with the latest advanced life support equipment. A mass casualty triage truck, which converts into a mobile hospital, is fully stocked to provide medical supplies for approximately 150-200 injured patients. The airport paramedics direct patient triage, treatment, and transport during mass casualty incidents in accordance with current Multnomah County EMS protocols.

When the fire fighters are not responding to emergencies, they are cleaning, inspecting, and servicing their equipment, station, and vehicles. They are required to have daily training sessions on various aspects of fire-life rescue work. In addition, firefighters perform monthly building inspections, teach first aid and CPR classes to airport personnel and during extremely severe weather conditions, provide additional runway standby services to arriving and departing aircraft.

All fire department personnel are required to maintain a high level of physical fitness. A minimum of one hour per duty shift is allotted for this purpose. Yearly physical examinations are mandatory along with full cardiac stress tests.