About 1-800-FIRE-LINE

History

In 1994, a group of volunteer fire service leaders from New Jersey met to discuss the problem of recruiting new firefighters and emergency medical personnel. From shared experiences, they determined that one of the major problems with recruitment is that the fire service had not adequately educated the public about the need for volunteers. Within a year, the committee started a statewide recruitment campaign for New Jersey. The plan for the campaign was simple: advertise the need for volunteers and give the public a toll-free number to call with a statewide answering point. This number was 1-800-FIRE-LINE.

In 1997, the pioneering New Jersey firefighters partnered with the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) to expand the program nationally. The NVFC adopted the 1-800-FIRE-LINE campaign to expand retention and recruitment outreach and promote volunteerism for fire/EMS responders, not only in New Jersey, but in every state across the U.S. While the NVFC operated the 1-800-FIRE-LINE number at the national level, every state was encouraged to register and implement the number independently.

In 2006, the NVFC decided to expand its retention and recruitment initiatives to reach out not only to emergency responders, but non-emergency volunteers as well. Therefore, Fire Corps, a federally-funded nonprofit program administered by the NVFC, took over national management of the 1-800-FIRE-LINE number to communicate to the public the need for both types of assistance in local fire/EMS departments.

Inquiries regarding the operation or implementation of 1-800-FIRE-LINE or requests for additional 1-800-FIRE-LINE materials can be directed to the Fire Corps national office at 1-888-FC-INFO1 (324-6361) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

FAQs

What is 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
How does 1-800-FIRE-LINE work?
Who manages and operates 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
What is the benefit in registering with 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
What funding sources are available to support 1-800-FIRE-LINE in my state?
How do I find out if my state is connected to 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
How can I register my state with 1-800-FIRE-LINE?

What is 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
1-800-FIRE-LINE is a national campaign to help retain and recruit both emergency and nonemergency volunteers in the fire and emergency medical services. As call volume continues to increase while the number of volunteer emergency responders has been declining, fire/EMS departments urgently need more personnel to protect their communities from fire and other emergencies. Career, combination, and volunteer departments also need assistance with non-emergency tasks so that first responders can focus on training and responding to emergencies and the departments can provide more programs and services in an effort to meet the growing needs of their communities.

How does 1-800-FIRE-LINE work?
1-800-FIRE-LINE provides the public with one toll-free telephone number anyone in the U.S. can call to find information about both emergency and non-emergency volunteer opportunities in their community. When a state joins the campaign, it connects the toll-free number to a central, statewide contact number. A call to 1-800-FIRE-LINE made from any area code within that state is routed to that state’s contact number. This contact number can be an existing number at your state’s association and serves to coordinate and route calls to 1-800-FIRE-LINE within the state.

Who manages and operates 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
Nationally, 1-800-FIRE-LINE is administered by the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) through Fire Corps. Fire Corps was formed to help increase the capacity of fire/EMS departments by recruiting citizens to perform non-emergency tasks. The NVFC is a nonprofit membership association representing the interests of the volunteer fire, EMS, and rescue services.

Locally, any statewide organization representing the interests of the fire and emergency services can adopt the 1-800-FIRE-LINE number. This includes the state fire marshal’s office, state firefighters or fire chiefs association, a state emergency training organization, the state fire program office, or the state EMS office.

What is the benefit in registering with 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
It is important to reach out to the public with retention and recruitment messages at the state and local levels. To be the most effective, 1-800-FIRE-LINE should address the specific needs of the state and /or communities served. For example, an area subject to wildland fires may need volunteers with specific skill sets. 1-800-FIRE-LINE can be used in that area to target fire/EMS personnel or non-emergency volunteers to assist with life safety education or teaching communities to become firewise.

When implemented at the state level, 1-800-FIRE-LINE can be tailored to help mitigate recruitment and retention challenges specific to that state. The state organization can also track state-wide recruitment efforts through 1-800-FIRE-LINE. This quantitative data may be used to support grant applications requesting additional resources and equipment.

What funding sources are available to support 1-800-FIRE-LINE in my state?
1-800-FIRE-LINE is a low-cost retention ad recruitment mechanism for states. The average cost for a state to participate in the campaign is $25 per month. This includes costs associated with providing a local telephone number to which calls to 1-800-FIRE-LINE will be routed. In addition, the NVFC provides a grant of $300 for non-registered states to connect to 1-800-FIRE-LINE. This grant is used to cover set-up fees, first-year operating expenses, and hook-up fees.

There are numerous grants available to assist in retention and recruitment efforts across the nation, such as the Department of Homeland Security’s Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant (www.fema.gov/firegrants/). You may also be able to find funding support from local, state, or national businesses and organizations. Find more funding ideas and grant opportunities.

How do I find out if my state is connected to 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
Contact the Fire Corps national office at 1-888-FC-INFO1 (324-6361) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

How can I register my state with 1-800-FIRE-LINE?
If your state is not currently registered with 1-800-FIRE-LINE, click here to find the three simple steps to connect to the toll-free recruitment number.