Across the United States, the number of volunteer firefighters continues to decline , a trend that is being felt firsthand by departments in rural communities. Christopher Pfau, Assistant Chief of the South Callaway County Fire Protection District, acknowledges that his team is not immune to this growing challenge.
Pfau noted that retaining and recruiting volunteers has become increasingly difficult with each passing year.
“Recruitment’s definitely been a challenge, especially over the last 20 years or so,” Pfau said.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, unpaid firefighters account for more than 60% of all firefighters in the United States, and more than 80% of the country’s fire departments operate either entirely or predominantly on volunteer labor. This reality is reflected within South Callaway County, where the department currently relies on 25 volunteers alongside seven full-time paid staff members.
“Most of our manpower is from volunteers,” Pfau said. “Paid staff only goes so far. We need to have the volunteers to be able to get the trucks, get the apparatus there and (get the ones) that are trained and can do an effective job.”
The responsibilities shouldered by volunteers extend beyond responding to emergency calls. They also assist with the maintenance of trucks and equipment, and commit several hours each week to ongoing training , a demanding schedule that Pfau believes may be contributing to the broader shortage.
Data published by the NFPA in 2023 reveals the scale of the problem at a national level. Since 2008, the volunteer fire service has lost an average of 12,000 firefighters per year, with total membership declining from approximately 827,000 to 635,000.
In May of this year, the Missouri Department of Public Safety distributed roughly $1.4 million in funding across 108 fire departments throughout the state. The South Callaway County Fire Protection District, however, was not among the recipients. In response, Pfau and his team are actively exploring alternative strategies to attract and retain volunteers.
“(We’re) providing our people with training opportunities (and) development opportunities (to) develop skills that they can take on to their other jobs and use elsewhere,” Pfau said. “But we’re looking at seeing what other type of benefits that we can offer for the volunteers on the volunteer side to help keep them long-term.”
