County profile
Scotts Bluff County, NE 11 departments
Fire department coverage, staffing, and EMS data for Scotts Bluff County, part of Nebraska.
Department Types
Fire Departments in Scotts Bluff County
| Department | Type | Personnel |
|---|---|---|
| GERING VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Gering · EMS | volunteer | 39 |
| HENRY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Morrill | other | — |
| LYMAN VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Lyman · EMS | volunteer | 24 |
| MCGREW RURAL FIRE DEPARTMENT Bayard | other | — |
| MINATARE-MELBETA VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Melbeta · EMS | other | — |
| MINATARE-MELBETA VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Minatare · EMS | volunteer | 22 |
| MITCHELL VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Mitchell · EMS | volunteer | 41 |
| MORRILL FIRE DEPARTMENT Morrill · EMS | other | — |
| SCOTTSBLUFF FIRE DEPARTMENT Scotts Bluff · EMS | other | — |
| SCOTTSBLUFF RURAL FIRE DEPARTMENT Scottsbluff | volunteer | 33 |
| WESTERN NEBRASKA REGIONAL AIRPORT CRASH RESCUE Scottsbluff · EMS | volunteer | 16 |
What the Fire Coverage Data Means for Scotts Bluff County, NE
Scotts Bluff County reports 11 fire departments in the federal HIFLD registry, staffed by approximately 175 total personnel. The organizational breakdown matters because career, volunteer, and combination departments differ sharply in response time, funding, and training cadence: this county lists 0 career (paid), 6 volunteer, and 0 combination departments. 8 of these departments 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. Nebraska overall averages roughly 18 personnel per department across 511 departments. Scotts Bluff County averages 16 personnel per department, 11% 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 13,600 fires and 26 fire deaths annually, and 50% 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 Scotts Bluff County, NE? ▼
Scotts Bluff County, NE has 11 fire departments with available federal data. 6 volunteer,
Does Scotts Bluff County have EMS coverage? ▼
Yes — 8 departments in Scotts Bluff County provide EMS services.
How many firefighters serve Scotts Bluff County? ▼
Scotts Bluff County has 175 total fire department personnel across 11 departments. The average per department is 16, which is 11% below the Nebraska average.
Are Scotts Bluff County fire departments mostly volunteer? ▼
Yes, 6 of 11 departments (55%) in Scotts Bluff County are volunteer.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Top fire departments in Scotts Bluff, NE
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.
