Ithaca Fire Department

The Ithaca Fire Department has transitioned over the years from a 100% volunteer organization to a paid-on call department. Over the years the department has had a membership as high as 75 volunteers in 1889 to the current membership of 21 paid on call members. The department throughout years has been wholly owned and operated by the City of Ithaca. The city has had a contractual agreement for many years with Arcada, Emerson, Lafayette, New Haven, Newark, and North Star townships for Fire and MFR (medical first response) services. That all changed in October of 2020 with the formation of the Gratiot Emergency Services Authority.