More than 2,200 professional and volunteer firefighters protect the citizens, homes and businesses of the greater Richmond region. Answering 190,000 calls each year, they battle structure, brush and automobile fires and respond to medical emergencies, working between calls to keep themselves and their equipment in top shape so they’re ready to come to the rescue at a moment’s notice.
A teacher for more than 15 years, Aaron Litchfield was burned out. He loved his career in public service but as an avid outdoorsman, he craved an adrenaline rush. So, at the age of 40, he decided to become a firefighter.
“I still wanted to help kids and give back to my community, but in a way that’s really active,” Litchfield says. “I wanted something that challenged me physically, offered something new every day and allowed me to work as a team rather than by myself.”
Litchfield was one of 42 recruits accepted into the current class of the academy, which will hold its graduation ceremony in February.
Firefighters practice extinguishing a car fire at the Henrico Fire Training Center. A hose line charged with water can weigh close to 300 pounds. (Photo by Jay Paul)
Hundreds apply to the Henrico Fire Training Academy each year, but only about 15% are accepted. Candidates must first pass the International Association of Fire Chiefs’ Candidate Physical Ability Test. It’s a rigorous drill, involving heavy gear and equipment, that must be completed in 10 minutes and 20 seconds. Applicants also go through an interview process and must show leadership potential. Many, like Litchfield, have college degrees and work experience, from sectors such as the military, finance, tech and medicine.
“We want folks with a heart for public service, the desire to help people and an understanding of hard work,” says Kevin Bartal, a 33-year veteran and the assistant chief of professional development and training with the Henrico Division of Fire. He points to the five virtues sewn into the Henrico Fire patch he wears on his right shoulder and adds, "Someone who shows respect, integrity, dedication, empathy and professionalism.”
Since July 31, the academy’s recruit class has trained to handle life’s scariest moments — including near-fatal car accidents and raging fires that reach 1,500 degrees. During the 30-week program, they learn skills required in fire and rescue and master countless drills at the fire training center, putting out literal fires, sometimes multiple times a day. “There’s a strategy and a science to what we do,” Bartal says. “We have lots of people doing lots of things. Everybody’s got to do everything, and they’ve got to do it until they’re perfect.”
That’s because when a call comes, everyone must know their role and get in place. There’s not one second to spare. “We have a saying, ‘Risk a lot, save a lot; risk a little, save a little,’” Bartal says. “You’ll get into those houses where people are trapped and you have to go a little bit further, a little bit hotter.”
Henrico Division of Fire Training Lt. Ronny Martin (Photo by Zaid Hamid)
Helping recruits through the process is Ronny Martin, the training lieutenant, who left a career in fitness to become a firefighter. “I love being able to influence a group of people when they first come in, seeing their progress and watching how much they change in the end,” she says. “And when the time comes, all that training will pay off. They’ll put their skills to the test to make a difference, and there’s no better feeling than that.”
Before graduating, recruits must pass the basic firefighting exam and the practical and written emergency medical technician exams. Additional testing is required for seasoned firefighters who want to join a specialty team such as hazmat, tactical rescue or the paramedics, who provide advanced life support and critical care.
In Henrico County, the fire department also runs Emergency Medical Services, which account for 70% of the 50,000 calls each year. Emergency medical services and transportation are free to citizens in Henrico County, a notable change from other parts of the country, where patients are typically charged for an ambulance ride. “Our larger rigs are set up with the same equipment that you have in the back of an ambulance, and our paramedic has the same skills,” Bartal says.
In February, Litchfield and his fellow fire academy graduates will walk across the stage to receive their hard-earned badges. “I tell the recruits at the swearing-in ceremony, ‘Your oath has to come from your heart, because you’re going to stand up in front of the judge and tell the world that you’re willing to lay your life down for people you don’t know,’” Bartal says. “And for me, it’s the best job in the world.”
Blazing Ahead
Richmond Fire & Emergency Services Chief Melvin Carter (Photo by Zaid Hamid)
Richmond’s Fire & Emergency Services department welcomed its latest recruit class in September, when 49 trainee firefighters received their badges. The city fire department is beefing up its staff by 20% thanks to a $13.7 million FEMA SAFER grant, which stands for Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response. The grant is making possible an increase of 72 professional firefighters and four new companies for a total force of 425, compared to Henrico County’s 600 and Chesterfield County’s 540.
“The city grew, the population grew, the infrastructure grew but the fire department hasn’t grown since the 1970s,” says Chief Melvin Carter. “Our call volume and emergencies continue to grow, and this is the first time we’re able to add to the fire department.”
About half of the city’s more than 43,000 annual calls are medical. While the city of Richmond has its own ambulance authority, the fire department supplements emergency medical services. “We are a BLS [basic life support] first-response agency,” Carter says. “Whenever high-priority calls come in, we respond. There are more fire companies than ambulances, so we can get there much faster.”
The city of Richmond also approved a salary increase for firefighters last fiscal year, helping the department become more competitive. Recruits make $49,000 during the training academy and $51,913 upon graduation. In Henrico County, recruits make $57,646 starting on Day 1 of the academy.
‘We Do It for Free’
In more populated areas like the city of Richmond and Henrico and Chesterfield counties, paid career firefighters and EMTs are common, but rural areas rely on volunteers. About 70% of all fire departments in the United States are mostly comprised of volunteers. This is the case in Powhatan County, where 90% of the firefighters and EMTs serving a population of 31,000 are volunteers.
Powhatan County has received two federal grants to ensure the department’s five fire stations and three rescue squads are well staffed. The career fire chief for Powhatan County, Phil Warner, says the grants have allowed the department to hire a recruitment and retention coordinator, leading to more efficient training and a steady stream of volunteer applications — around five to 10 each month.
While volunteers must earn the same certificates as a paid firefighter or EMT, the training process is less formal in Powhatan than in Henrico County or Richmond. “They don’t pass a physical test like the [Candidate Physical Ability Test], just a physical,” says Warner, who has served 26 years as a volunteer and professional firefighter. “Over the course of the first year, we like the new folks to have enrolled in or completed a Firefighter I and II class or an EMT class. We know they are volunteers with families and careers who might need to do things at a slower pace.”
Powhatan volunteer firefighter Brenda Breon (Photo by Zaid Hamid)
When Brenda Breon relocated from California to Virginia for a job at the age of 46, she enlisted as a volunteer firefighter in her off time. Ten years later, she’s serving as president of Powhatan’s Company 1 as well as the county fire association. “We’re just like paid firefighters, except we do it for free,” she says. “All of us have paid jobs during the day and go on duty nights, weekends and holidays.”
Breon has the heart of a volunteer, whether she’s going on rescue missions or playing the role of Mrs. Claus in the department’s annual Santa Run. She is one of 90 female volunteers, who compose a third of the force in Powhatan. And although she’s just 5 feet, 1 inch tall, she’s unintimidated by hard work and heavy lifting. “I think all of the females on our team are proving to ourselves we can do this, even though it’s a man world,” she says. “There are a lot of amazing female firefighters. One of my fellow firefighters and friends is a retired UPS driver, and she can run circles around the younger kids.”
Breon is not an EMT but she is a firefighter certified by the state of Virginia. The first year, she completed more than 260 hours of training, passing the Firefighter I and II classes and the hazmat course.
In 2022, Powhatan County Fire & Rescue responded to more than 3,400 calls, most of which were medical. The team responded to 126 fires — largely backyard brush fires that got out of hand, according to Warner.
Powhatan County is running several innovative programs to recruit fire and rescue personnel. In the Junior Emergency Technician program, children ages 12-15 are invited to learn about fire and rescue service, leadership, and teamwork. Powhatan High School offers the Firefighter I course through its career and technical education program. “A lot of our young men and women have used our volunteer program to springboard into career departments like Chesterfield, Henrico and Richmond,” Warner says.
One of Henrico County’s recruits, Gray Chambliss, started volunteering for Goochland County Fire-Rescue when he was just 15 years old. After earning a college degree and working for a few years, Chambliss gravitated toward a firefighting career. He says the experience he gained in his youth gave him a foundation for his fire academy training. “In the volunteer world, there’s more of a need for firefighters,” Chambliss says. “In the career world, there were hundreds of other people who applied for my job, so I’ve really had to learn and push myself.”
Fighting fires requires skill and strength; a 35-foot extension ladder weighs 122 pounds. (Photo by Jay Paul)
Ongoing Training and Teamwork
Despite the stereotypes, firefighters are not sitting around, playing poker and eating chili — and between responding to fiery wrecks, burning buildings, medical emergencies and false alarms, they don’t have time to rescue cats from trees. Whether career or volunteer, fire and rescue teams must stay in shape, learn new skills and earn annual accreditations.
“You have to use your downtime to make sure your craft is still good,” Bartal says. “Education is one thing, but experience is how you improve and know what to do when the time comes.”
Breon continues to take as many classes as she can, from tying knots to rescuing large animals. Just two weeks after completing a farm machinery extraction course, she put her skills to use when a Powhatan County farmer got his clothing tangled in a fence post auger that was attached to a tractor. They got him out and loaded him into a med flight for treatment at a nearby hospital.
Doug Clevert, Henrico County’s deputy fire chief of community risk reduction, says firefighters are required to work out for an hour each day, keep supplies in stock, and clean and maintain equipment. “From the time we come to work at 7 in the morning and leave at 7 at night, we are working,” he says.
Clevert, who’s been with the City of Richmond and Henrico County fire departments for 17 years collectively, says the long shifts and teamwork required of the job create bonds among the firefighters. “We do everything together,” he says. “We go grocery shopping together, eat dinner together, spend holidays together. We coach each other’s kids’ sports teams and watch them grow up. You spend a third of your life with your fire family.”
Chambliss says camaraderie is one of the reasons he was drawn to a career in fire and rescue. Despite the dangers of the job, you’re never in it alone. “It’s the friendships and brotherhood that you build — everybody looks out for each other, on and off shifts.”
By the Numbers
Departments from around the region practice at the Henrico Fire Training Center. (Photo by Jay Paul)
Henrico County
334,000 residents | 600 career firefighters | 22 fire stations | 53,462 annual calls
Chesterfield County
378,000 residents | 540 career firefighters | 23 fire stations | 50,928 annual calls
City of Richmond
229,000 residents | 425 career firefighters | 20 fire stations | 43,371 annual calls
Hanover County
112,000 residents | 300 career and volunteer firefighters | 16 fire stations | 33,000 annual calls
Powhatan County
31,000 residents | 275 volunteer firefighters | 5 fire stations | 3,481 annual calls
Goochland County
26,000 residents | 237 career and volunteer firefighters | 6 fire stations | 4,397 annual calls
Safety Tips
- Most fires start in the kitchen. You can use a large lid or cookie sheet to smother a fire, but it’s recommended to keep a fire extinguisher nearby.
- Have an escape plan for everyone in the family.
- Test smoke detectors every six months.
- When you see smoke, call 911.
- Close doors to help isolate a fire.
- If you can’t get out, open a window and wave a blanket to catch the attention of arriving firefighters.
- Drivers are required by law to slow down and move over for emergency and support vehicles. With fast-moving traffic on the interstate, it’s especially important to give rescue and response teams space to work.
- Spring fire season is Feb. 15-April 30. Wildfires are more likely during fire season due to weather conditions and human actions.
- Citizens wishing to burn outdoors are encouraged to check local laws and fire-safety guidelines.
Information courtesy Henrico and Powhatan county fire departments
Illustration by Duncan Robertson
Hot Couture
Firefighters rely on both tradition and technology in their turnout gear. Personal protective equipment is similar across departments in our region, although the specific tools vary with the station and situation. A basic PPE kit weighs upwards of 80 pounds, not including tools or extras, and costs more than $10,000 per person. —Mindy Kinsey
1. Turnout Coat
Made from fire-resistant materials such as Nomex or Kevlar, turnout coats are marked with fluorescent stripes and reflectors as well as each firefighter’s name, making them easy to see and identify. A hood similar to a skier’s balaclava is worn inside the coat to protect the firefighter’s neck.
2. Gloves
Heat- and flame-resistant gloves also incorporate Kevlar fabric to protect from abrasions.
3. Irons
Called “irons” when fitted together for carrying, the axe is used to break through locked doors, and the Halligan tool is useful for prying open doors and windows.
4. Turnout Pants
Similar to the turnout coat, firefighters’ pants are made from fire-resistant materials to protect from extreme heat. They are held up by suspenders, making them easy to get into.
5. Helmet
While helmets have retained their traditional shape, materials have been updated from leather to composite and Kevlar to pair protection with cost effectiveness; leather helmets run more than $1,000, while those made from modern materials can be less than $100. The front shield identifies its wearer’s rank and engine company number.
6. Radio
Communication is essential for safety, so firefighters wear a two-way radio at all times. Newer models integrate with a motion alarm and provide location information. Firefighters also often wear a thermal-imaging camera to help them locate trapped people or detect fires smoldering behind walls.
7. Flashlight
Firefighters either carry or wear flashlights that are designed not to spark or ignite flammable gases.
8. SCBA Mask and Tank
The self-contained breathing apparatus allows firefighters to breathe when surrounded by smoke and harmful gases.
9. Fire Extinguisher
Firefighters carry extinguishers for putting out small fires as they walk through buildings.
10. Boots
Firefighters can wear either leather or rubber boots to protect their feet while they work. Between calls, they often position the shafts of their boots inside the cuffs of their turnout pants so they can pull on both with one motion.
Special thanks to Capt. Shawn Williams of the Henrico County Division of Fire for his help in identifying and describing gear.
