Rochester Fire Department

Rochester Fire Department traces its roots to January 22, 1866, and was formally organized as a volunteer department on July 2, 1870, making it one of the older fire departments in Minnesota. Today RFD operates five stations staffed around the clock, providing fire suppression not just within Rochester's city limits but also to the surrounding townships of Cascade, Rochester, Haverhill, and Marion, with mutual aid extended to neighboring departments on request.

Beyond structural firefighting, RFD firefighters are all Nationally Registered EMTs who respond to more than 5,000 medical emergencies a year, from vehicle crashes and cardiac arrests to falls. The department also fields technical rescue capability (rope, confined space, vehicle extrication, and water/ice rescue) and serves as the designated Chemical Assessment Team (CAT) for an 11-county region, giving it a regional hazmat response role well beyond city boundaries. Fire investigation, code enforcement/plan review, and public fire-safety education round out its mission.

The department has lost four firefighters in the line of duty between 1942 and 1976, memorialized through its Honor Guard, established in 2001. RFD's stated mission is to "compassionately solve problems that threaten life, health and property," reflecting an emphasis on teamwork and community care alongside emergency response.

RFD hires firefighters through a competitive, cyclical process built around a written exam, oral interviews, and background screening, followed by a conditional-offer stage with psychological and medical exams and a physical ability test. New hires go through an 8-12 week in-house, drill-intensive recruit academy covering firefighting fundamentals plus rope rescue, confined space, and hazardous materials, followed by a six-month probationary period.