2023 MFD Annual Report

The ADMINISTRATION DIVISION, along with the BUDGET and FINANCE SECTION are located at 711 West Wells Street on the third floor of Fire Station #2.  This small, yet efficient and dependable staff, handles the human resources functions for all department members, handles budgeting and financial aspects of the department as a whole, and provides fire and emergency medical services reports to requesters.  The offices of the Chief and Assistant Chiefs are also at this location, and all directives from them originate from Administration.

The MFD is a service organization, and although most of the business functions of this staff are routine in nature, processes are continuously refined to maintain outstanding efficiency.  These professionals continue to meet the challenges of an ever-changing environment while adjusting to new technology and policies, and updated government laws. 

The MFD CONSTRUCTION and MAINTENANCE DIVISION, located at 118 West Virginia Street, provides unwavering and exemplary service to the citizens of Milwaukee, as well as firefighters This is done by designing, purchasing, and maintaining a fleet of 200 vehicles at-the-ready to respond.

This staff of 28 maintains 40 fire stations and service buildings, as well as all equipment such as self-contained breathing apparatus, extrication equipment, and emergency medical equipment used at lifesaving incidents. In addition to the vital day-to-day tasks of building, fleet, and equipment upkeep, this division supports other City departments, state and federal agencies, nearby protective services departments, participates in community relations / training programs, and spearheads the cancer prevention / firefighter safety initiative.

The MFD TRAINING ACADEMY, located at 6680 North Teutonia Avenue, is shared with the Milwaukee Police Department. The Training Academy is led by a Deputy Chief with a dedicated staff of 19 including Community Relations, and the Survive Alive House.

The Training Academy is responsible for training and educating every sworn MFD employee.  It offers numerous programs including all-encompassing fire recruit instruction, a two-year cadet program, and department-wide in-service training.  In addition, they also provide State of Wisconsin Technical College System Fire Service Training Certification Programs.  The Training Academy provides its facility to other City of Milwaukee agencies upon request.

Review 2023 Training Academy Highlights

Review 2023 EMS Education Highlights

The MFD HEALTH AND SAFETY DIVISION, consists of a health and safety manager, fire medical officer, athletic trainer, peer fitness team, peer support team, and chaplains.  Each of these components plays a vital role in the overall health and wellness of our members.  The MFD continues to maintain strong partnerships with outside organizations to ensure our programming is industry-leading, finding additional resources that are meaningful to our members to keep them Well at Work, Well at Home, and Well into Retirement.

Review 2023 Health and Safety Highlights

Battalion 1, located at 3628 North Holton Street, is comprised of five fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 13, 18, 27, 30, and 36, Ladder Trucks 5 and 12, and
MEDs 5 and 7

The 1st Battalion encompasses the northern portion of the east side of Milwaukee stretching west from Lake Michigan to 27th Street. Among the most notable of large campuses to protect is the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Master Lock, theaters and historic landmarks, along with a multitude of high-rise residences and businesses. The geography and structures provide unique challenges as well as opportunities to train and perfect the ever-changing craft of firefighting.

2023 Battalion 1 Highlights

Battalion 2, located at 4927 West Fiebrantz Avenue, is comprised of five fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 9, 22, 24, 34, and 37, Rescue 2, MEDs 4, 13, and 18

The 2nd Battalion covers a portion of the northwest side of the city to include the neighborhoods of Hampton Heights, Grasslyn Manor, Mount Mary, Old North Milwaukee, Franklin Heights, Sunset Heights, Sherman Park, Havenwoods, Washington Heights, and Dineen Park.

2023 Battalion 2 Highlights

Battalion 3, located at 4515 West Burnham Street, is comprised of five fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 10, 26, 28, 29, 33, and 35, MEDs 3 and 14, and Tier 1 HazMat and Engine 55 staffed by Wauwatosa Fire Department

The 3rd Battalion covers the southwest side of the city, in an area ranging from I-94 to the city’s southern border along Forest Home and Howard Avenues, as far east as 16th Street, and out to the city’s western border. Since 1991, there has been an intergovernmental agreement in which the Milwaukee Fire Department protects the Village of West Milwaukee. In addition to residential, commercial and industrial facilities, firefighters protect iconic Milwaukee venues such as the Milwaukee County Zoo, Mitchell Park Domes, and American Family Field.

2023 Battalion 3 Highlights

Battalion 4, located at 3174 South Chase Avenue, is comprised of four fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 7, 11, 12, and 14, Ladder Trucks 1 and 8, and
MEDs 15 and 17

The 4th Battalion provides emergency services to the area bordered by the southern portion of downtown to the southern city limits at College Avenue, and from Lake Michigan west to South 27th Street.

2023 Battalion 4 Highlights

Battalion 7, located at 10320 West Fond du Lac Avenue, is comprised of five fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 4, 8, 16, 38 and 39, Ladder Trucks 3 and 7, and
MEDs 16 and 19

Additionally, 2 MFD firehouses staff private ambulance companies, one Bell Ambulance and one Curtis Ambulance

The 7th Battalion, which is the largest of the battalions, geographically, covers approximately 36 square miles in the northwest corner of Milwaukee. The area of this battalion is unique to the city because it hosts a large mix of single family homes, condominium complexes, apartment buildings, manufacturing business parks, some high-rise structures, and of notable hazards, a fuel storage tank farm. Not only does the 7th have this mix of building occupancies, it also serves incidents on Interstate 41 as well as state highways 145, 100, and 175.

2023 Battalion 7 Highlights

Battalion 10, located at 755 North James Lovell Street, is comprised of five fire stations, led by a Battalion Chief with the following emergency response companies:

Engines 1, 2, 21, 23, and 32, Ladder Trucks 2 and 9, Rescue 1, MED 6 and the Dive and Heavy Urban Rescue Teams

In addition, MED 22, an all-terrain response vehicle capable of carrying up to four MFD responders along with a patient cot, provides the means to access injured people in dense pedestrian areas not easily accessible with traditional emergency response vehicles.  MED 22 is used at events such as the Polar Plunge, Milwaukee Marathon, various other lakefront events/festivals, and the Fight For Air Stair Climb.

Being in the heart of the city, the 10th Battalion encompasses all of downtown Milwaukee as well as the nearby surrounding areas, proudly serving from Lake Michigan on the east, 35th Street on the West, Greenfield Avenue on the south and North Avenue on the north.  This area encompasses all of downtown Milwaukee, the Menomonee Valley, most of the Lower East Side, and all of the Historic Third Ward. The downtown area and surrounding neighborhoods host many events including festivals, concerts, conventions and sporting competitions in venues such as the Fiserv Forum, Summerfest, Potawatomi Casino, the Wisconsin Center, and the lakefront.

Being in the midst of downtown, there are numerous high-rise buildings that can present challenges to firefighting.  Two college campuses, Marquette University and Milwaukee Area Technical College, provide an ever-changing student population.  Alter Trading, previously known as Miller Compressing, is a metal recycling facility which has been known to produce some eye-catching, though not dangerous to surrounding property fires, in debris piles; water supply can be a challenge here.

2023 Battalion 10 Highlights

The Milwaukee Fire Department (MFD) has been a partner in the Milwaukee County Shared Services Initiative since its inception in 2013. The premise of the initiative is to dispatch the closest most appropriate resources for fires and emergency incidents, regardless of municipal borders. The initiative has since developed beyond its initial scope to include sharing and maintenance of emergency vehicles and equipment, training, and transfer of emergency vehicles into empty fire stations during fires and emergency incidents.

2023 Shared Services Highlights

The MFD Mobile Integrated Healthcare (MIH) Program, run out of Station 31, 2400 South 8th Street, provides integral support to the populations of Milwaukee and the mission of the MFD.  This non-emergent response program is an essential part of the long-term plan to reduce call volume and improve the overall health in the city; the program has been recognized as a nationwide leader in the field.  The MFD’s community paramedics work tirelessly to connect their patients with the most appropriate resources, striving to provide equitable access and education to underserved populations in Milwaukee regarding medical, behavioral health and substance use disorder needs. 

2023 MIH Program Highlights

The MFD Boat Team, located at Station 1, 784 North Broadway, has been proudly and dutifully serving the citizens and visitors of the City of Milwaukee for over 120 years. They provide fire, EMS, and rescue services for many waterways and shorelines, extending 40 nautical miles east into Lake Michigan, as well as servicing off-shore areas.

The Milwaukee Fire Department Boat Team is the oldest of all the MFD specialized teams, taking delivery of the first boat in 1889. The current fireboat, Trident, is the 11th edition in a long line of capable vessels; a model of technology with twin 570 hp Cummins diesel engines supplying power to jet propelled drives capable of pushing the 39-foot Metalcraft Marine Boat over
35 knots. It has the capability of flowing 3400 gpms for fighting near-shore or off-shore fires, can transport up to three critically injured victims with advanced life support care, and perform off-shore search and rescue with state-of-the-art radar, forward looking infrared cameras, radio direction finder, and sonar searches beneath the water’s surface.

The MFD Dive Team, located at Station 2, 755 North James Lovell Street, was founded in 1961 by a group of dedicated firefighters who volunteered to go through a Navy training program after they recognized the need for water rescue capabilities. They train monthly to maintain their skills in a multitude of disciplines including deep diving, night diving, river rescue, swift water rescue, submerged auto rescue, thin ice rescue, and ice diving.

Cross-training between these two teams is integral to their successful operations.

2023 Boat Team Highlights

The MFD Hazardous Materials (HazMat) Team, located at Station 33, 4515 West Burnham Street in West Milwaukee, began in 1982 as a remedy to small-scale fuel spills and other similar situations. Members serve as HazMat technicians, and some serve in instruction and outreach roles, locally, throughout the state, and around the nation. The team has relationships with entities such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security, State Lab of Hygiene, 54th Civil Support Team, Wisconsin Emergency Management, the City of Milwaukee Health Department, and surrounding fire departments.

As the world changes, so too has the HazMat Team. Along with the typical fuel spills, household chemical mishaps, and industrial chemical leaks, the team specializes in weapons of mass destruction, illicit labs, terror threats, and radiological events. As one of only two Tier 1 teams in the state, it is tasked with responding to high-profile situations anywhere in the southern half of Wisconsin. Along with responding in person to events, team members serve in an advisory role via phone for hazmat incidents, which allows MFD physical assets to remain available.

2023 HAZMAT Highlights

The MFD Heavy Urban Rescue Team (HURT) was established in 1995 as a consolidation of the Rope Rescue Team and the Deep Tunnel Team. Since this merger, the HURT’s capabilities have grown to include confined space rescue, trench rescue, structural collapse rescue, high and low angle rope rescue, advanced auto extrication, heavy vehicle lifting and stabilization, man-in-machine rescue, firefighter survival, and others. The HURT also handled deep tunnel rescue for several years in the early 2000’s. The HURT has improved its complement of rigs and equipment each year to meet the technical rescue needs of the City of Milwaukee and its Shared Services partners.

Two fully staffed heavy rescue companies were established in January of 2012. The addition of the rescue units resulted in the team being split into two separate station houses. Rescue 1 is housed at 1400 South 9th Street along with Engine 23 and Rescue 4 (trench and structural collapse rescue rig), and Rescue 2 is housed at 4927 West Fiebrantz Avenue along with Engine 24. These two locations provide the city with enhanced technical rescue coverage as well as additional training opportunities. The HURT partners with public and private organizations to gain realistic training and experience in rescue situations.

2023 HURT Highlights

The MFD Tactical Emergency Medical Services (TEMS) Team running out of Station 9, 4141 West Mill Road, consists of highly trained paramedics with additional education and practical training in tactical combat casualty care. These individuals provide medical care and support for both law enforcement and civilians during high-risk law enforcement incidents such as hostage and stand-off situations, warrant services, active shooter events, and civil unrest. TEMS-specific heavy apparatus, staffed daily with four paramedics, allows the department the ability to take the heavy apparatus out-of-service and surge two additional advanced-life-support (ALS) units, MED 20 and MED 21 when frontline ALS resources are exhausted. This pivoting capability helps to provide the City of Milwaukee with unwavering ALS service coverage.

In addition, MED 22, an all-terrain response vehicle capable of carrying up to four MFD responders along with a patient cot, provides the means to access injured people in dense pedestrian areas not easily accessible with traditional emergency response vehicles. MED 22 is used at events such as the Polar Plunge, Milwaukee Marathon, various other lakefront events/festivals, and the Fight For Air Stair Climb.

2023 TEMS Highlights

The Fire Investigation Unit (FIU) founded in 2009, is a branch of the MFD Special Operations Division. The FIU is comprised of specially trained members, currently 31, with one 24-hour investigator on duty at all times. All FIU members are IAAI-FIT (Fire Investigation Technician) certified, three of which belong to Chapter 25.

The FIU is mandated by state laws and municipal ordinance to determine the cause and origin of fires within the City of Milwaukee, and is dispatched to scenes with damages over $10,000, fire fatalities, fire injuries, and suspicious, incendiary, or trend-fires, responding with a vehicle that is outfitted with tools and equipment needed to support on-scene fire investigations. The FIU reports annually on fire-related incidents using NFPA 921's four general classifications: incendiary, accidental, natural, and undetermined. Working with multiple agencies, such as the Milwaukee Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), and the State Fire Marshal, determinations are made of how fires started, and then if criminal charges need to be pursued, the FIU works with the criminal justice system to support criminal charges through arrest, and if found guilty, sentencing.

2023 FIU Highlights

The MFD Incident Command Post Team, located at Station 12, 2130 West Oklahoma Avenue, was officially founded as an MFD special team on January 1, 2012. Crews respond with a state-of-the-art communications RV that has internet, phone, fax, lighting, and recording capabilities. Team members specialize in providing support to the command staff at major incidents, improving the safety of the public, as well as department members.

Examples of responding incident types include second alarm and greater fires, high-rise fires, hazardous materials incidents, and active-shooter situations. This team is available to surrounding communities through the Shared Services initiative. The team and equipment are utilized at large events around the city such as July 3rd Fireworks, Lakefront Marathon, US Bank Marathon, Al's Run, and the Milwaukee Air & Water Show.

The team incorporates unmanned aerial system (UAS/drone) technology at incidents as requested which provides a high resolution view of the entire emergency scene. Thermal imaging capabilities are attached to the drone which helps to locate hotspots in a building fire, as well as to aide in search and rescue missions, and structural collapses.

The MFD FIRE CADET PROGRAM continues to be a successful avenue to give tremendous opportunity to high school graduates seeking a career in the fire service, while positively impacting the diversity of the firefighting workforce.

Cadets volunteered their time to Habitat for Humanity, American Red Cross, Junior Fire Institute, Camp HERO, and the American Red Cross.

The MFD FIRE RECRUITS are challenged both physically and mentally throughout
their 16 weeks of preparation at the MFD Training Academy. They graduate with the tremendous privilege and responsibility of being professional firefighters, ready to serve.

MFD COMMUNITY RELATIONS is comprised of a dedicated staff which reaches out to the public to teach various fire and health safety programs. Instruction on properly functioning smoke alarms, evacuation planning and preparedness, fire extinguisher use, emergency medical services, elder care, and the career of firefighting are just a sampling of the programs offered. The section is led by a fire lieutenant, serving as the director, and is rounded out by three dedicated firefighters serving as fire education specialists. Together, they spearhead the education of the citizens of Milwaukee on matters pertaining to fire and healthy safety.

In the fall of 1987, a series of house fires devastated Milwaukee by claiming the lives of 31 people including 18 children. In response to this tragic loss of life, a Fire Prevention Task Force was appointed to explore ways in which the Milwaukee community could prevent future fire fatalities from occurring. The concept of a Fire Safety Education Center was proposed to the Fire Prevention Task Force for consideration.

It was felt that a fire safety and prevention program introduced at an early age would be an effective way of teaching children to escape from a fire. The Task Force approved the proposal in December of 1987 and a committee consisting of individuals from throughout the community was formed to begin planning and development of the program.

THE SURVIVE ALIVE HOUSE IS REALIZED

The Milwaukee Fire Education Center’s Survive Alive House, located at 2059 South 20th Street, officially opened its doors in February 1992. The Milwaukee Public Schools’ Division of Recreation and Community Services and the Milwaukee Fire Department operate the House jointly.  The house is available to public and private schools located in the City of Milwaukee. Over 13,000 Milwaukee children visit each year to learn to survive in the event of an actual fire in the home.  MFD members along with MPS Recreation staff and community volunteers assist during the program’s operation.  Funding for capital improvements and certain operating expenses is provided by the nonprofit Foundation for the Milwaukee Fire Education Center.

In 2019, a new mobile version of the Survive Alive House was realized due to a grant from Pieper Power Foundation and efforts via a fundraising gala held in 2018.  The Traction Factory custom-designed shrink wrap to complete the project.

2023 SURVIVE ALIVE Highlights:

- The 2023 Summer Program served 412 students and 65 adults

- The Summer Adventure Program provided sixteen classes and the Summer Safety Program, six

- The event, Doors Open, saw 193 people walk through the house

The Milwaukee Firefighters Honor Guard (MFHG) was founded on January 1, 1996 by Fire Lieutenant Randy Leach. Fire Lieutenant Leach identified a need for the Milwaukee Fire Department (MFD) to have its own honor guard, so with the help of a handful of other active MFD members, the MFHG was established! Since its inception, the MFHG has continued to grow in order to meet the demands for services.

The MFHG has been proudly standing by its mission to honor all MFD members and care for their families. Their primary responsibility is to stand casket guard at funerals of both active and retired members. Other services are provided such as pallbearer duties, posting/retrieving of colors, folding of the flag and presenting it to families of the fallen, marching colors in parades, and presenting colors for sports venues. In the last several years, the MFHG has been requested, and has stood side-by-side, with the Milwaukee Police Honor Guard. Just as firefighters train to keep their skills honed, the MFHG trains to keep sharp.

Currently the team is commanded by Fire Lieutenant Matthew Bryant and is comprised of 26 Milwaukee firefighters, either active or retired, who volunteer their time to provide services for the Milwaukee community, as well as statewide, and nationally. All funding for the team comes from private donations. In 2022, the MFHG was asked to attend 93 events, and of those, at least one member of the MFHG was in attendance at 85 of them.

The Milwaukee Fire Department has a rich history of serving the youth of the community and has been working with local students for over twenty years.

The MFD JUNIOR FIRE INSTITUTE (JFI) is a non-profit mentoring organization which provides a fun, safe, and rewarding program to all its students at absolutely no charge which helps to ensure accessibility to all members of the community. The program is designed for students 14 – 20 years old who have expressed an interest in the fire service. Students may join the program at any time. They are given a monthly opportunity to experience basic firefighting, first aid skills, and leadership opportunities, with a focus on courage, integrity, and honor. These opportunities serve to help students decide if firefighting and emergency medical technician careers are ones they would like to pursue.

In 2023, an four-day intense summer camp was a great success with 40 students learning various skills and techniques. Roughly 20 students participated in both the American Family Field and Lambeau Field Stair Climb to benefit the American Lung Association. Looking for future growth in 2024.