The Melbourne Fire Department serves the community from eight stations, responding to more than 13,000 incidents per year. The stations are located geographically around the city to allow emergency response times of four-minutes or less.
In addition to fire suppression, the department provides Emergency Medical Services. Seven of the stations are licensed in advanced life support and are staffed by paramedics. The Fire Department's Code Compliance Division is responsible for public education, building inspections, and fire investigations. Department personnel also aid in community disaster relief efforts by providing search/rescue and recovery assistance after a natural disaster, such as a hurricane.
MISSION: The Melbourne Fire Department is committed to responding to community needs by providing for the protection of life and property through innovative Emergency Medical Care, Fire Suppression, and Hazard Mitigation Services.
VISION: Though a combination of diverse and dedicated professionals and state-of-the-art technology and quality equipment, the Melbourne Fire Department strives to be an organization to which others will benchmark their efforts.
Emergency Medical Services: The Melbourne Fire Department developed an Emergency Medical Services Division in 1997. Implementation of Advanced Life Support (ALS) medical care services began in 1998 and ALS service is now available from 7 of the 8 Melbourne fire stations. Melbourne firefighters work to stabilize patients until a Brevard County ambulance arrives to provide transportation to a hospital.
The Department currently employs 69 State certified paramedics and 67 State certified Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT). With an average response time of 4.53 minutes to emergency medical calls, the men and women of the Melbourne Fire Department endeavor to provide our citizens and visitors with the highest level of emergency care.
Advanced Life Support: Advanced Life Support (ALS) involves life saving techniques performed by State of Florida certified paramedics, who also are qualified to administer drugs to extend life until such time as the victim is delivered to a hospital. All eight of the City of Melbourne fire stations are equipped with 12-lead heart monitors and automated CPR devices. Seven of the fire stations respond with paramedics trained in advanced cardiac life support, pediatric life support and pre-hospital trauma life support.
Paramedics are capable of administering life saving drugs during emergencies such as heart attacks, allergic reactions, asthma attacks, seizures and other medical emergencies. The quick responses with rescue trucks mean that paramedics can be on the scene of most emergencies in 6 minutes or less.