History
In 1975 dedicated residents joined forces to create the Rist Canyon Volunteer Fire Department. Using donated equipment and their own personal credit, Station 1 was built. Today with 3 stations RCVFD has grown into a 100% donation-based, effective emergency response department. 50 years and 4 major disasters later… we thank them for their vision and foresight.
Who We Are Today
RCVFD is staffed by over 35 volunteer emergency responders and strongly supported by the community. Our response area has grown from 38 square miles in 1975 to approximately 110 square miles today, plus another 70 square miles of automatic mutual aid with our neighboring districts. We maintain a fleet of 13 mountain terrain response vehicles. To improve response coverage throughout our area, several of these are staged at the residences of responders.
We have over 15 licensed and registered EMTs and EMRs on our department, and each of them has a comprehensive medical kit appropriate for their level of certification. This means that wherever we have responders, we have capabilities ready to respond at a moment's notice. We recently upgraded our medical transport capabilities, and we now have a 4wd ambulance that is transport-rated. We still prefer to send patients with our ALS-capable ambulance partners, but having the ability to transport a patient when necessary helps us improve outcomes for our community.
How This Works
Having a 100% donation-funded fire department is very rare these days. At last count, we were one of only a handful of such departments in the entire state of Colorado. We take pride in our many years of experience and expertise in wildland fire, and we view protecting our community to be a community-wide effort. Whether it is as simple as calling 911 to report a smoke plume, learning CPR to protect your family and your neighbors, or giving your time and energy as a responder on our department, there are a myriad of ways for you to get involved.
Running a fire department is expensive, and the budget grows every year. We need Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for every responder, single-use medical supplies, specialty equipment designed for use in extreme situations, ongoing training to retain certifications, and the list goes on. To meet these needs, we have a dedicated team that actively pursues grants in both the public and private sectors. But the bulk of our budget is financed by the generosity of residents and friends of the community. As a registered 501(c)3 non-profit, all donations to Rist Canyon Volunteer Fire Department are tax-deductible, and often qualify for corporate matching.
Donate Today and help us stay independent and effective.