Department profile

Career (Paid)

Columbia Fire Department

Columbia, SC · Richland County. Columbia Fire Department is a Career (Paid) department, 29 stations and 520 total personnel. According to the HIFLD fire-station federal registry (as of 2026-09), full equipment, coverage, and staffing data are below.

520
Total personnel
29
Stations
Not reported
Fire trucks
No
EMS service

The verdict

Columbia Fire Department pairs top-1% national personnel with a headcount more than double the South Carolina average.

Top 1%
national personnel size
+1980%
vs. South Carolina average
29
stations

National percentile ranks this department's personnel headcount against every listable U.S. department with reported staffing; the state comparison uses the same personnel figure against its own state's average. Both feed the verdict sentence and the chips above.

D
PlainFireData Composite Score
31/100
Columbia Fire Department

A staffing, equipment, EMS-integration, and federal-grant-funding composite benchmarked against every other USFA-registered department nationally, not a safety rating, response-time measure, or comparison of fire risk. Dimensions with no data on file are excluded and their weight redistributed, never counted as zero.

Staffing capacity D
17.9 personnel per station (national median 23.5)
Equipment readiness
No vehicle count on file for this department
EMS integration
Not an EMS-capable department (USFA registry)
Federal investment
No FEMA AFG grant award on file for this department
520 personnel · 29 stations

Columbia Fire Department is a Career (Paid) department serving Columbia, SC (Richland County), with 29 stations and 520 total personnel. According to HIFLD fire-station registry fields; among listable U.S. departments with reported personnel it ranks #53 of 22,440.

  • National personnel rank #53 of 22,440
  • SC personnel rank #1 of 473
  • 5.58 stations per 100 personnel
  • 4 other listed departments in Richland County

Columbia Fire Department vs. the national personnel distribution

Where this department's HIFLD-reported staffing sits among every listable U.S. fire department

520 Top 1% higher than 99%+ of 22,440 departments

Listable U.S. fire departments, banded by total personnel

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more departments. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source HIFLD fire-station registry · 2026-09-06

Dispatch plate

Sheet 40104 · Columbia Fire Department, SC 520 personnel · 29 stations

PERS-LARGE · STA-SYSTEM · TYPE-CAREER · EMS-N · RANK-TOP · PHOTO-FINISH · FEMA-NONE · BOOK-FULL

  • PERS-LARGE 520
  • STA-SYSTEM 29 stations
  • TYPE-CAREER Career
  • EMS-N No EMS flag
  • RANK-TOP #53
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ City of Long Beach
  • FEMA-NONE No AFG/SAFER
  • BOOK-FULL 4/5 fields

Nearest personnel peer: City of Long Beach Fire Department, CA (+ 1 personnel)

Career/paid HIFLD roster counts, station rows, EMS flag, listable personnel rank, photo-finish peer, and FEMA AFG/SAFER book for this FDID, not a readiness rating.

Personnel neighbourhood

Nationwide HIFLD headcount poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every SC department.

Department Profile

Type
MOSTLY CAREER
Location
Columbia, SC
FDID
40104

Staffing vs the South Carolina average

How Columbia Fire Department's personnel count compares to the typical department in South Carolina. In-state it ranks #1 of 473 by personnel among listable departments with reported staffing. Nationally it ranks #53 of 22,440 on the same basis as the largest-departments ranking.

▲ 1980% above the state average
Stations
29
State fire deaths/yr
75
SC departments
689

County roster weight

Columbia Fire Department carries 86.2% of Richland County HIFLD personnel

Among 6 listed departments (603 personnel), this FDID is the plurality weight, while volunteer departments are 0% of the county count. County / state rollup.

5.58 stations per 100 HIFLD personnel (29 stations / 520 roster).

Photo-finish peer: City of Long Beach Fire Department, CA (+1 personnel).

No FEMA AFG/SAFER awards on this FDID in USAspending (empty federal book).

Nearby Departments

Columbia Fire Department
Eastover · other
All SC departments →

Nationwide career peers near 520 personnel

Photo-finish and same-type HIFLD neighbours for this FDID, not a reprint of every SC department.

City of Long Beach Fire Department, CA 521 Toledo Fire and Rescue Department, OH 508 Cy-Fair Volunteer Fire Department, TX 508 Chesterfield Fire and Emergency Medical Services, VA 533 Virginia Beach Fire Department, VA 503 Norfolk Fire - Rescue, VA 498 Raleigh Fire Department, NC 549 Colorado Springs Fire Department Complex, CO 490

Frequently Asked Questions

How many firefighters does Columbia Fire Department have?

Columbia Fire Department has 520 total personnel according to HIFLD data. This is 1980% above the South Carolina average of 25 per department. Among listable U.S. departments with reported personnel, it ranks #53 of 22,440 by total personnel (same basis as the largest-departments ranking). Within SC, it ranks #1 of 473 by personnel.

Does Columbia Fire Department provide EMS services?

Columbia Fire Department is not listed as providing EMS in the HIFLD record. Contact local emergency services to confirm which agency covers medical calls.

How many fire stations does Columbia Fire Department operate?

Columbia Fire Department operates 29 fire stations.

What type of fire department is Columbia Fire Department?

Columbia Fire Department is a Career (Paid) department serving Richland County, SC. Career departments employ full-time paid firefighters.

How many fire departments are in South Carolina?

South Carolina has 689 fire departments with 17,475 total personnel. 49% are volunteer departments.

Related guides

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Verify with USFA/FEMA →

HIFLD/USFA registry extract, informational only, not a readiness rating.