Toronto Fire Services (TFS), commonly called Toronto Fire, provides
fire protection
Fire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of potentially Conflagration, destructive fires. It involves the study of the behaviour, Compartmentalization (fire protection), compartmentalisation, suppression and inve ...
,
technical rescue
Technical rescue is the use of specialised tools and skills for rescue, including but not limited to confined space rescue, rope rescue, trench rescue, structural collapse rescue, ice rescue, swift water rescue, underwater rescue, and cave rescue. ...
services,
hazardous materials
Dangerous goods are substances that are a risk to health, safety, property or the Natural environment, environment during transport. Certain dangerous goods that pose risks even when not being transported are known as hazardous materials (syll ...
response, and
first responder
A first responder is a person with specialized training who is among the first to arrive and provide assistance or incident resolution at the scene of an emergency. First responders typically include Law enforcement, law enforcement officers (co ...
emergency medical assistance in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
. TFS is currently the largest municipal
fire department
A fire department (North American English) or fire brigade (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a fire company, fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organi ...
in Canada and has been internationally recognized for providing world-class fire protection services.
History
The first fire company in what is now Toronto was the York Fire Company created in 1826, followed by the Hook and Ladder Fire Company in 1831. These early companies consisted of able-bodied volunteers that were not well trained. A wooden pumper presented to Toronto by the British America Assurance Company c. 1837 has been preserved at
Black Creek Pioneer Village.
The city's vulnerability to fire was highlighted by the
Great Toronto Fire of 1849 and
that of 1904. After the latter fire, which destroyed much of
Bay Street
Bay Street is a major thoroughfare in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the centre of Toronto's Financial District, Toronto, Financial District and is often used by metonymy to refer to Economy of Canada, Canada's financial services indust ...
from The Esplanade West to Melinda Street, Toronto's Fire Department was recognized as a critical city service.
With the
amalgamation of Toronto
The amalgamation of Toronto was the creation of the city limits of Toronto, Ontario, Canada after amalgamation (politics), amalgamating, annexation, annexing, and merger (politics), merging with surrounding municipalities since the 18th century ...
, the fire departments of
Metropolitan Toronto
The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...
's six constituent municipalities were merged in 1998 to form Toronto Fire Services, the largest fire department in Canada
and the fifth-largest municipal fire department in North America.
In the 2010s, Station 424 and four pumper trucks were taken out of service and Fire District 12 was disbanded, due to budgetary constraints and obsolescence.
A new plan was introduced seeing to inclusion in staffing, a permanent safety task force for the needs of
Toronto Community Housing, and a new station was opened in Downsview Park.
TFS holds accreditation from the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) and the Centre for Public Safety Excellence, recognizing the organization's delivery of "world-class fire protection services". As of 2024, Toronto was the largest city in North America to receive international fire service accreditation.
Predecessor organizations
Former borough departments
* North York Fire Department, est. 1923 – merged seven volunteer brigades
* Scarborough Fire Department, est. 1925 – replaced five volunteer bucket brigades dating to the 1850s
* New Toronto Fire Department, est. 1930
* Township of Etobicoke Fire Department, est. 1955, merged with New Toronto Fire Department 1967
Organization

The fire chief (C1), as well as the four commanding deputy chiefs (C2 through C5), are all based at 4330
Dufferin Street, which is the central headquarters for both Toronto Fire and
Toronto Paramedic Services. There are four division commanders (C6 through C9), each based in their respective commands: north, east, south and west.
List of chiefs
Toronto Fire Services chiefs have been promoted from within the service's ranks – with the exception of Jim Sales, who was
Edmonton's fire chief (1988–2000) and
Markham fire chief (2000–2001) before serving as a bureaucrat and general manager of the City of
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Central Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay. Although it is physically in the county, Barrie is politically independent. The city is part ...
.
* Alan F. Speed: 1997–2003
* William A. Stewart: 2003–2012
* Jim W. Sales: 2012–2016
*
Matthew Pegg: 2016–2024
* Jim Jessop: 2024–present

* Innotex – current bunker gear
* Cairns 660C Metro composite fire helmet – current fire helmet (as of June 2018)
* Drager UCF 7000 thermal imaging camera
* Globe Supreme 14 fire boot
* MSA G1 self-contained breathing apparatus
Vehicles
Early fire companies in Toronto used horse drawn engines and ladders. The first motorized pumper, based in the College Street station, came into use in 1911. Tiller-ladder trucks were used until the 1950s, when smaller aerial trucks were adopted to operate in narrow streets. In the 1970s, the last open air vehicles were phased out and Metro's fire departments had vehicles with fully enclosed cabs. In 2024, North America's first fully-electric fire truck was built for TFS.

Fire boats
The Toronto Fire Department and successor Toronto Fire Services has operated fire boats since 1923. The service presently has two fireboats in service: ''
William Lyon Mackenzie
William Lyon Mackenzie (March12, 1795 August28, 1861) was a Scottish-born Canadian-American journalist and politician. He founded newspapers critical of the Family Compact, a term used to identify the establishment of Upper Canada. He represe ...
'', which entered service in 1964 and is the department's main fireboat and icebreaker; and ''William Thornton'', a former
Canadian Coast Guard cutter acquired by TFS in 2015.
Fire stations
As of 2014, TFS operates 83 fire stations.These Fire Stations are organized into 15 districts.These Districts are located in 4 geographical divisions.Several companies have been disbanded or reassigned over the years.
North Command
The North Command's office (Command 1) is located at Fire Station 114. There are 21 stations in the 3 districts of North Command. (District 12 was disbanded in 2013, its 4 stations absorbed into the surrounding districts.)
East Command

The East Command's office (Command 2) is located at Fire Station 221. There are 22 stations in the 4 districts of East Command.
South Command
The South Command's office (Command 3) is located at Fire Station 332. There are 22 stations in 4 districts of South Command.
West Command
The West Command's office (Command 4) is located at Fire Station 442. There are 19 stations in the 4 districts of West Command. (Fire Station 424 at 462 Runnymede Road closed permanently in 2014.)
See also
*
List of historic Toronto fire stations
*
Woodbine Building Supply fire
Other members of Toronto's Emergency Services structure include:
*
Toronto (CAN-TF3) Heavy Urban Search and Rescue
*
Toronto Paramedic Services
*
Toronto Police Service
Footnotes
Notes
References
External links
*
Toronto Fire Services – Active Incidents (LiveCAD)
{{Fire fighting, state=collapsed
Fire departments in Ontario