About the Fire Department

Responsibilities

The Amesbury Fire Department, as established under Article 5 of the Amesbury Town Charter, has seven major functional areas of responsibility:

To prevent fires through inspection of properties for compliance with State and Local By-Laws
To utilize all available means to decrease the incidence of uncontrolled fire, including:
- Code Enforcement - Use legal means to correct discrepancies from the codes
- Education - Instruct and inform the public
- Engineering - Review design plans for code violations
- Fire Investigation - Identify areas for future education legislation to assist in correction of problems.

To suppress fires in order to prevent the loss of life and property
To provide life safety rescue services
To confine fire to its place of origin
To extinguish fires
To provide mutual aid to neighboring communities as needed (in return we receive the same mutual aid support)

To provide Emergency Ambulance Service for Advanced and Basic life support
To transport Priority 1, 2, and 3 patients to Emergency Care Facilities located outside the Town limits
To respond to working fire and hazardous material incidents, to stand by for emergency medical services as needed
To provide a first aid station at selected City events
To administer the Emergency Services Revolving Account
To provide non-transporting Advanced Life Support service to the City and the Region

To provide First Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents and take appropriate action to protect lives and the environment.
To enforce State and Local Codes regarding Hazardous Materials.
To provide L1, L2 and L3 incident awareness and training.
To coordinate actions and work with various State agencies in dealing with Hazardous Materials Incidents.

General and specific administration of the permanent, full time Fire Department.

To lead, plan, organize, and control Fire Department functions
To develop and administer the Fire Department budget
To conduct fire/explosion investigations
To administer and appropriately enforce State Statutes and Local Fire codes
To administer the emergency medical services, training, and safety at all incidents
To research and aggressively pursue Grant funding at the Local, State, and Federal levels

The Fire Department works closely with the following agencies and departments: