Welcome to the Hazelwood Fire Department web site. It is the vision of our Department to be acknowledged by our public and peers as sincere, caring, and willing professionals. In order to achieve and maintain this goal, we have adopted a customer service philosophy, not only toward our citizens but also toward each other. While maintaining these values requires daily effort, we believe the sum of our Department lies with the men and women who comprise it. We take pride in our Department and are proud of each other. The results of our efforts can be seen in the quality programs and equipment outlined within this site. If, after browsing our site, you have additional questions, feel free to contact any member of our team.

Email Matthies@Hazelwoodmo.org

Fire Department Stations

Station #1 is located at 6100 N. Lindbergh in the heart of Hazelwood's industrial center near Boeing Corp. and G.K.N. Aerospace Industries. The Station is manned daily by four full time personnel operating a Smeal quint 75 foot ladder.

Station #2 is located in our residential at 6800 Howdershell Road. The Station houses the Department's administrative offices, training center, and fire prevention bureau. In addition to the administrative team, the Station is staffed daily by seven full time personnel operating a Smeal quint 85 foot aerial platform, a rescue support vehicle, and a paramedic ambulance.

Fire Department Apparatus

In 1995 the Department adopted the quint concept. In order to accomplish this, the officers and members of the Department developed specifications for two quint apparatus. The goal was to reduce the number of vehicles used and increase manning per vehicle. The result also increased safety for our personnel, reduced maintenance costs, and a marked increase in initial response effectiveness. Quint style trucks feature five essential elements: 1. a water pump, 2. a water tank, 3. a full compliment of hose, 4. a full compliment of ground ladders, and 5. an aerial ladder with a master water stream appliance. Below are the general specifications of our quint fire trucks, all manufactured by the Smeal Corp. of Nebraska.

Truck 4125 is an 85 foot quint ladder platform. This unit carries 400 gallons of water, a 50 gallon foam cell, 1000 feet of 5 inch hose, 500 feet of 3 inch hose, three 1-3/4 inch preconnects a 2-1/2 inch preconnect and a 1-1/2 inch front mounted booster. The truck is powered by a series 60 Detroit diesel engine supporting a 1500 gpm single stage pump. There are two large air cylinders attached to the ladder for breathing air at the aerial platform and for refilling self-contained breathing apparatus. The truck is staffed with at least one paramedic and carries paramedic equipment like that on an ambulance. The vehicle carries several types of rescue equipment, qualifying the truck as a rescue unit.

Truck 4115 is our newest quint. It is a 75 foot ladder truck that carries 500 gallons of water, a 50 gallon foam cell, 1000 feet of 5 inch hose, 500 feet of 3 inch hose, three 1-3/4 inch preconnects, a 2-1/2 inch preconnect, and a 1-1/2 inch front mounted booster. The unit is powered by a series 60 Detroit diesel engine supporting a 1500 gpm single stage pump. This truck features the latest technology in hydraulic rescue tools which can be rapidly deployed from reels in a rear truck compartment. This truck also qualifies as a rescue unit.

Click on Fire Truck for video

Truck 4122 is a 55 foot quint ladder truck also manufactured by Smeal Corp. This truck is used as a reserve vehicle when one of the other trucks is out for maintenance. This unit carries 500 gallons of water, a 50 gallon foam cell, 1000 feet of 5 inch hose, 500 feet of 3 inch hose, three 1-3/4 inch preconnects, a 2-1/2 inch preconnect, and a 1-1/2 inch front mounted booster. The unit is powered by a series 60 Detroit diesel engine supporting a 1500 gpm single stage pump. The unit has two pre-piped deck guns, is equipped to serve as an SCBA filling station, and qualifies as a rescue unit.

Click on Ambulance for video

Unit 4127 is a 2004 Type III ambulance custom built on a Ford E350 chassis by the American Emergency Vehicles company of North Carolina. Staffed with 2 paramedics, our Hazelwood ambulance service maintains the latest technologies in patient care, including digital communication and reporting technology, 12 lead heart monitoring, the latest airway management systems, and advanced I-V therapy.

Fire Department Personnel

The Hazelwood Fire and Rescue Department is comprised of 36 dedicated professional fire fighters. The organizational structure is broken down into a Chief, an Assistant Chief, a Deputy Fire Marshal, three on-shift Battalion Chiefs, three Captains, and 27 fire fighters supported by an executive secretary and secretary. The Department actively promotes educational opportunities which has resulted in a team of highly educated and skilled individuals. This allows the Department to utilize members in more than one position. For example, the three on-shift Battalion Chiefs function as the Training officer, EMS officer, and Public Relations officer. Three fire fighters act as inspectors while on shift, supporting the Deputy Fire Marshal and two fire fighters acting as fire brigade instructors supporting local industry. Sixteen of our fire fighters and one officer are paramedics and staff the paramedic equipped fire trucks and ambulance, and nearly all Department personnel are EMT certified. The Department also has personnel trained and certified in confined space rescue, hazardous materials, high angle rescue, and arson investigation. Many of the HFD team serve as instructors at area schools or training facilities.

Below is an organizational chart depicting the structure of the Hazelwood Fire and Rescue Department.

Operations

The Operations Division of the Fire Department is headed by the Assistant Chief. This position is responsible for the day to day operation of the Department in relation to suppression and building and equipment maintenance. In addition, the Assistant Chief oversees the training division and supports the Department's information systems and communication.

Emergency Management

The Fire Chief heads the City's Emergency Management Agency. The EMA operates under State approval in conjunction with the State and County Emergency Management Agencies. The Agency operates under an integrated system of emergency response and mitigation. Leadership for individual areas of responsibility such as shelter, health, waste management, communication, etc. is derived from various City staff with expertise in each area. Citizen volunteer groups augment the City's personnel. Currently in existence to participate in a time of disaster or large scale emergency are a citizen's police group, a short wave communications team called HECT (Hazelwood Emergency Communications Team), a weather spotters group, and the NEST organization (Neighborhood Emergency Service Team). The latter consists of groups of private citizens living in a specified geographical area and trained in search and rescue, survival, basic first aid and triage, and mitigation practices. The City expects to train 15 to 20 individual teams throughout the City.

Training Bureau

The Fire Department's Training Bureau is headed by one of the Department's Battalion Chiefs and supervised by the Assistant Chief. The Training Officer's responsibility is to provide lesson plans, coordinate internal and external training, and maintain records. Department personnel meet or exceed all Insurance Service Organization (ISO) required training. This includes a minimum of 20 hours training per month per man. The Department also participates in two County-wide training organizations which produce programs too expensive or sophisticated for an individual department to develop. In addition to the above, the EMS officer ensures four CEU hours of EMS training per month for all licensed Department members.

Public Relations Division

The Fire Department's Public Relations Division is headed by one of the Battalion Chiefs. This Division serves as liaison to the community, communicating news, and safety information from the Department through various media. In addition to newsletters, flyers, and newspaper articles, the Public Relations Officer ensures the Department's involvement with civic organizations such as St. Louis Safe Kids and Explorer Scouting. The Department takes pride in its involvement in the community and encourages citizen support through its Public Relations Division.

Public Educational program responsibilities are shared between the Deputy Fire Marshal and the Public Relations Officer.