Fire Department · Combination
Central Emergency Services
Soldotna, AK · Kenai Peninsula County
Station #1 alone handles over 70% of CES's 3,000+ annual responses and is described as the busiest fire station on the Kenai Peninsula.
No active openings right now
Watch this department to be notified when Central Emergency Services is hiring, or check their careers page.
Department careers page ↗Central Emergency Services protects the City of Soldotna and the surrounding Kenai Peninsula Borough service area, extending south to Mile 104 of the Sterling Highway and out toward Ridgeway, Sterling, Kalifornsky, Kasilof, and Funny River. Station #1 in Soldotna serves as the primary response point for the city and doubles as headquarters and warehouse for CES's four outlying substations, together covering roughly 25,000 year-round residents plus a seasonal surge of visitors to nearby state and national forests and the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers.
Station #1's original building dates to 1956, when it was built as a community hall; a 1964-1967 addition converted it for use by the area's volunteer fire department, followed by a major remodel in 1973 and an expansion to its current footprint in 1983. Response demand has since outgrown that facility - Station #1 was designed for 300-400 calls a year but now handles the majority of CES's 3,000+ annual responses - and in October 2022 borough voters approved a bond to fund a new, larger Station #1 combining administration, apparatus bays, and training space in one building.
Beyond structural fire and EMS response, CES supports wildland fire operations for the Alaska Division of Forestry, provides auto-aid to the neighboring City of Kenai, and responds to incidents on the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers. The service area is governed by an elected five-member CES Service Area Board, which meets monthly to oversee department operations and capital projects like the Station #1 rebuild.
MissionCentral Emergency Services is dedicated to protecting the lives and property of our community and visitors by providing professional emergency services through incident response, training, public education and fire prevention.
CES does not run a separate applicant portal; openings are posted through the Kenai Peninsula Borough's Human Resources job listings alongside all other borough departments.
Does Central Emergency Services Station #1 only serve the City of Soldotna?
No. While Station #1 is the primary response location for Soldotna, its coverage extends to Mile 104 of the Sterling Highway and out to Murwood Dr. on K-Beach Rd. and Forest Ln. toward Sterling. It's also the headquarters for four CES substations serving the unincorporated communities of Ridgeway, Sterling, Kalifornsky, Kasilof, and Funny River, covering roughly 25,000 residents.
How many calls does CES respond to each year?
CES responds to more than 3,000 calls annually, not counting the summer influx of visitors to nearby state and national forests. Station #1 alone is the primary or secondary responder for over 70% of those calls.
Does CES handle wildland fire response?
Yes. CES supports wildland fire operations for the Alaska Division of Forestry and provides auto-aid to the neighboring City of Kenai.
When does the CES Service Area Board meet?
The board meets on the third Thursday of each month at 6:00 pm (no meetings in March, June, July, August, or December); the meeting location rotates monthly.