Weslaco Fire Department

Weslaco Fire Department is a career department serving the city of Weslaco and part of Hidalgo County Precinct #1 in South Texas, near the U.S.-Mexico border. The department fields 73 commissioned firefighters working three shifts out of three stations - Station 1 (Northside), Station 2, and Station 3 (Southside) - covering roughly 45,000 residents and answering more than 12,000 calls for service a year, including responses to the international bridge that carries cross-border traffic between the U.S. and Mexico.

Beyond structural firefighting, WFD is built around a large EMS operation, handling over 10,000 911 EMS calls and transporting more than 17,000 patients annually with firefighter/paramedic crews. The department also maintains wildland and water-rescue capability through a fleet of brush trucks and boats, and runs a Fire Marshal's Office that inspects and reviews plans for more than 1,300 commercial occupancies under the adopted International Fire Code and NFPA 101 Life Safety Code.

WFD is also active in community risk reduction, reaching over 10,000 local youth annually through school-based fire safety education, running senior-focused fire safety talks, and organizing the Rio Grande Valley Medical Reserve Corps, a CERT/Teen CERT program, an annual Youth Preparedness Camp, and a Home Fire Preparedness Campaign with the American Red Cross that has placed more than 450 free smoke alarms in over 300 homes.

The Fire Department does not run its own separate recruitment page; openings (when posted) run through the City of Weslaco's citywide ApplicantPro job portal, alongside all other city departments. Applicants apply online (resumes are accepted only as a supplement, not in place of the application) and are subject to background checks, drug testing, reference verification, and E-Verify employment eligibility confirmation; some positions may also require transcripts, exams, or a physical examination.