County profile
Mississippi County, MO 5 departments
Fire department coverage, staffing, and EMS data for Mississippi County, part of Missouri.
Department Types
Fire Departments in Mississippi County
| Department | Type | Personnel |
|---|---|---|
| ANNISTON FIRE DEPARTMENT Anniston | volunteer | 18 |
| BERTRAND FIRE DEPARTMENT Bertrand | other | — |
| CHARLESTON DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Charleston | career | 30 |
| EAST PRAIRIE FIRE DEPARTMENT East Prairie · EMS | volunteer | 18 |
| WYATT VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Wyatt | volunteer | 14 |
What the Fire Coverage Data Means for Mississippi County, MO
Mississippi County reports 5 fire departments in the federal HIFLD registry, staffed by approximately 80 total personnel. The organizational breakdown matters because career, volunteer, and combination departments differ sharply in response time, funding, and training cadence: this county lists 1 career (paid), 3 volunteer, and 0 combination departments. 1 of these department also provides Emergency Medical Services, meaning the same crews that arrive on a structure fire can often begin patient care on cardiac or trauma calls without waiting for a separate ambulance agency.
Benchmarking the county against its parent state highlights coverage gaps and strengths. Missouri overall averages roughly 20 personnel per department across 1,128 departments. Mississippi County averages 16 personnel per department, 20% below the state mean. Lighter staffing per department is common in rural counties where a larger number of small volunteer companies share territory. The state reports about 43,100 fires and 95 fire deaths annually, and 52% of its departments are volunteer-run.
Residents, property owners, and insurance agents can use this profile in several practical ways. A home inside a career or combination department's first-due area typically earns better ISO Public Protection Classification ratings and lower homeowners premiums than one served solely by a distant volunteer station. If the county is heavily volunteer, it is worth checking whether the nearest department has recent FEMA AFG or SAFER grants and whether mutual-aid agreements extend coverage during large incidents. Click into any department below to see its specific personnel count, station footprint, apparatus inventory, EMS status, and FEMA grant history. All figures come from HIFLD Open Data (FEMA/DHS) and USFA published fire statistics; small volunteer departments are sometimes underreported, so treat zero-value fields as missing data rather than absent services.
FAQ
How many fire departments are in Mississippi County, MO? ▼
Mississippi County, MO has 5 fire departments with available federal data. 1 career, 3 volunteer,
Does Mississippi County have EMS coverage? ▼
Yes — 1 department in Mississippi County provide EMS services.
How many firefighters serve Mississippi County? ▼
Mississippi County has 80 total fire department personnel across 5 departments. The average per department is 16, which is 20% below the Missouri average.
Are Mississippi County fire departments mostly volunteer? ▼
Yes, 3 of 5 departments (60%) in Mississippi County are volunteer.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Top fire departments in Mississippi, MO
Source: U.S. Fire Administration — National Fire Department Registry NFDR (National Fire Department Registry) · 2024 NFDR is a voluntary registry; not all departments may be included. Personnel counts include both career and volunteer staff.
