Irving Township is served by three fantastic fire departments: Hastings Fire Department, Freeport Area Volunteer Fire Department and Thornapple Township Emergency Services.
Hastings Fire Department
The Hastings Fire Department provides emergency and non-emergency services for the protection of life and property for citizens in a 135 square mile radius that includes the City of Hastings, all of Rutland, Hastings, and Baltimore Townships, one-half of Carlton Township, and one-quarter of Irving Township.
The department is operated by the City of Hastings and the BIRCH (Baltimore, Irving, Rutland, Carlton, and Hastings) Association. The City owns (1) Class A pumper and (1) 100 foot aerial . The Rural owns (2) Class A pumpers, (1) water-tender, (1) rescue truck, and (2) grass trucks.
We are a combination department with a full-time Fire Chief, One full-time driver, and twenty one members. The station is manned 8 hours a day 5 days a week from 7:00 am until 4:00 pm. The station is unmanned nights, weekends and holidays We handle about 450 calls each year, including structure fires, auto accidents, brush fires, etc. In addition to emergency calls, we also do numerous fire prevention activities including going to local schools to teach fire safety to the children of our community. The city has an insurance rating of “4”.
Freeport Area Volunteer Fire Department
Mission Statement
We will risk a lot to save a life
We will risk a little to save property
We will risk nothing to save nothing
Overview
Freeport Area Volunteer Fire Department shall respond to the needs of our community with dedication and compassion. We shall provide unmatched service through prevention and protection.
Services
We provide Fire, Rescue, Haz-Mat and EMS response for portions of Carlton and Irving Townships in Barry County, a portion of Bowne Township in Kent County and a portion of Campbell Township in Ionia County.
Thornapple Township Emergency Services
Thornapple Township provides fire-rescue and ambulance (advanced life support) transport response for residents of Thornapple Township through a voted fire millage and service fees. In addition, Yankee Springs Township and a portion of Irving Township contract with Thornapple Township for fire-rescue services.
The Emergency Services Department Building was completed in 2004 and is located at 128 High Street in downtown Middleville. The building includes the apparatus bay, living quarters and office/administration space, including a state of the art training room. In addition, the department owns an offsite training facility for flashover training, which was obtained through a grant from the federal government. Thornapple Township also uses the Yankee Springs Fire Station, located on M-179 in Yankee Springs Township.
The department includes full time employees and paid on call staff. To contact the Emergency Services Administrator, call 269-795-7243
Burn Permits
Please remember to obtain a burn permit (no charge) prior to burning unwanted items/brush to avoid fines.
BIRCH / Hastings Fire Department: (269) 945-5384 option 1
Freeport Fire District: (269) 205-3208
Thornapple Fire District: (269) 795-7243
