History

The Milan Fire Department was established in 1900 and started out as an all-volunteer department with just ten members. The first fire equipment of the department was a two-wheeled, hand-pulled hose cart that carried 500 feet of 2½” hose line. Later, two additional carts were purchased at a salvage sale in Tennessee.
In 1920, the City of Milan purchased a Model “T” Ford truck equipped with a hose body, soda-acid extinguisher tank and ladders from the American La-France Company. This truck did not have a pump so, in 1929, the body was placed on a Model “A” Ford truck with a “Dartey Champion” front-end pump mounted on it. By this time, the department had grown to 12 members.

As time went on, and the needs of the department grew, the City purchased a new fire engine. This was a 1940 American La-France pumper with a 500 g.p.m pump, fully equipped with ladders and other firefighting equipment. Ten years later, in 1950, the City of Milan purchased an American Fire Apparatus with a 500 g.p.m. four-stage pump. This engine carried 400 gallons of water with two booster lines and one 1½” pre-connected master stream.

From 1900 to 1970, Milan Fire Department members were all volunteers. In 1970, the City of Milan was faced with a problem due to the growth of the city: the Fire Suppression Rating service industry, which reviews fire protection capabilities of individual communities, advised the City of Milan that its rating of 7 would fall to an 8. A city’s rating is based on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the best and 10 meaning basically no fire protection service provided. This would make the city residents’ insurance rates rise, unless the fire department was manned 24 hours a day.

On April 4, 1970, the city board of aldermen voted to transition to a combination fire department (Paid Full-Time/Volunteer Fire Department). The department hired 9 full-time and 16 part-time firefighters, which made up two shifts to provide fire protection coverage to the city 24/7.

In 1981, the department expanded and constructed a second fire station on North Main St. It was a small, one-bay station and would usually have only two firefighters stationed there at a time. In 1997, it was renovated and made larger to accommodate three firefighters.

In 1998, Chief Paul Wallace headed the next big change for the department: members were cross-trained as Medical First Responders and certified in vehicle extrication. Firefighters would respond to medical emergencies and vehicle accidents where patients were trapped if the ambulance was not in town. Milan was the first fire department in Gibson County to implement such a program.

Today, the Milan Fire Department is a combination department with full-time career and volunteer members staffing two stations 24/7. All members are cross-trained in firefighting, vehicle extrication, and haz-mat response, and are state certified as Emergency Medical Responders or Emergency Medical Technicians. The department continues to provide a highly dedicated, trained, and professional service to the citizens of Milan.