Municipal fire department · Ohio · United States

Columbus Division of Fire

The Columbus Division of Fire (CFD) is the fire and emergency medical services agency for the City of Columbus — approximately 910,000 residents across 225 square miles, the capital of Ohio and the most populous city in the state. The division fields roughly 1,600 uniformed members from around 35 fire stations and operates an integrated fire-EMS model: every operational firefighter is at least EMT-certified, paramedic units provide advanced life support transport, and the same agency handles fire suppression, advanced life support emergency medical service, technical rescue, hazardous materials response, and aircraft rescue and firefighting at John Glenn Columbus International Airport. Firefighter recruitment is administered by the Columbus Civil Service Commission. The process typically includes an online application, civil service entrance examination, the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT), medical and psychological evaluation, background investigation, and an oral interview. Eligible candidates are placed on a ranked register and hired from that list in cycles tied to budgeted academy classes. Successful applicants attend the CFD Training Academy for a multi-month recruit course covering structural firefighting, EMT certification, technical rescue, and hazmat awareness. Application windows are announced on the official Civil Service Commission portal — Bluewatch is a directory and links there for the authoritative process.