Department profile

Volunteer

Oelwein Fire Department

Oelwein, IA · Fayette County. Oelwein Fire Department is a Volunteer department, 1 station and 28 total personnel. According to the HIFLD fire-station federal registry (as of 2026-09), full equipment, coverage, and staffing data are below.

28
Total personnel
1
Stations
Not reported
Fire trucks
Not reported
EMS service

The verdict

Oelwein Fire Department pairs modest national personnel with a headcount above the Iowa average.

48th pct.
national personnel size
+40%
vs. Iowa average
1
station
$806,903
FEMA AFG/SAFER awards on record

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.

B
PlainFireData Composite Score
69/100
Oelwein 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 B
28 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 B
$28,818 in AFG grant funding per staff member (national median $11,875, among departments with a grant on file)
28 personnel · 1 station

Oelwein Fire Department is a Volunteer department serving Oelwein, IA (Fayette County), with 1 station and 28 total personnel. According to HIFLD fire-station registry fields; among listable U.S. departments with reported personnel it ranks #11,684 of 22,440. Cumulative FEMA AFG/SAFER awards on record: $806,903.

  • National personnel rank #11,684 of 22,440
  • IA personnel rank #214 of 589
  • 3.57 stations per 100 personnel
  • 12 other listed departments in Fayette County

Oelwein Fire Department vs. the national personnel distribution

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

28 Top 52% higher than 48% 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 33008 · Oelwein Fire Department, IA 28 personnel · 1 station

PERS-SMALL · STA-1 · TYPE-VOL · EMS-UNK · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · FEMA-MID · BOOK-FULL

  • PERS-SMALL 28
  • STA-1 1 station
  • TYPE-VOL Volunteer
  • EMS-UNK EMS pending
  • RANK-MID #11,684
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Fairbury City
  • FEMA-MID $807K
  • BOOK-FULL 4/5 fields

Nearest personnel peer: Fairbury City Fire Department, NE (+ 0 personnel)

Volunteer 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 IA department.

Department Profile

Type
MOSTLY VOLUNTEER
Location
Oelwein, IA
FDID
33008

FEMA Grant History

$807K
Cumulative funding (FY2020–2021)
2
Awards
Year Award Amount
2021 EMW-2021-FF-01566 $44,998
2020 EMW-2020-FG-16665 $761,905

Source: USAspending.gov (CFDA 97.044 AFG / 97.083 SAFER)

Staffing vs the Iowa average

How Oelwein Fire Department's personnel count compares to the typical department in Iowa. In-state it ranks #214 of 589 by personnel among listable departments with reported staffing. Nationally it ranks #11,684 of 22,440 on the same basis as the largest-departments ranking.

▲ 40% above the state average
Stations
1
State fire deaths/yr
39
IA departments
810

County roster geometry

Fayette County HIFLD mix around Oelwein Fire Department

Fayette County: 13 departments, 211 personnel (9 volunteer / 0 career / 0 combination); EMS flag on 8% of departments. County / state rollup.

3.57 stations per 100 HIFLD personnel (1 station / 28 roster).

Photo-finish peer: Fairbury City Fire Department, NE (+0 personnel).

Nearby Departments

Clermont Fire Department
Clermont · volunteer
Elgin Fire Department
Elgin · other
Fayette Fire Department
Fayette · volunteer
Harlan Township Fire Department
Maynard · volunteer
Hawkeye Fire Department
Hawkeye · volunteer
Saint Lucas Fire Department
Saint Lucas · volunteer
All IA departments →

Nationwide volunteer peers near 28 personnel

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

Fairbury City Fire Department, NE 28 Garden City Fire Department, UT 28 Shirley Volunteer Fire Department, IN 28 McConnellsville Fire District, NY 28 Oneida Castle Fire Department, NY 28 Idyllwild Fire Protection District, CA 28 Volunteer Fire Company of Vernon Incorporated, NY 28 Estill County Fire Department, KY 28

Frequently Asked Questions

How many firefighters does Oelwein Fire Department have?

Oelwein Fire Department has 28 total personnel according to HIFLD data. This is 40% above the Iowa average of 20 per department. Among listable U.S. departments with reported personnel, it ranks #11,684 of 22,440 by total personnel (same basis as the largest-departments ranking). Within IA, it ranks #214 of 589 by personnel.

Does Oelwein Fire Department provide EMS services?

EMS capability is not specified for Oelwein Fire Department in the HIFLD database.

How many fire stations does Oelwein Fire Department operate?

Oelwein Fire Department operates 1 fire station.

What type of fire department is Oelwein Fire Department?

Oelwein Fire Department is a Volunteer department serving Fayette County, IA. Volunteer departments rely on community members who serve without full-time compensation.

Has Oelwein Fire Department received federal grants?

Yes, Oelwein Fire Department has received 2 FEMA grants totaling $806,903 in cumulative AFG and SAFER awards across FY2020–2021 (sum of all recorded award years, not a single-year figure). The most recent award year in our extract is FY2021.

How many fire departments are in Iowa?

Iowa has 810 fire departments with 16,337 total personnel. 70% 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.