Department profile
VolunteerEMS ProviderSister Lakes Fire Department
Dowagiac, MI · Van Buren County. Sister Lakes Fire Department is a Volunteer department, 1 station and 55 total personnel. The department also provides EMS services. According to the HIFLD fire-station federal registry (as of 2026-09), full equipment, coverage, and staffing data are below.
- 55
- Total personnel
- 1
- Stations
- Not reported
- Fire trucks
- Yes
- EMS service
The verdict
Sister Lakes Fire Department pairs top-quartile national personnel with a headcount more than double the Michigan average.
- Top 15%
- national personnel size
- +150%
- vs. Michigan average
- 1
- station
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.
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.
Sister Lakes Fire Department is a Volunteer department serving Dowagiac, MI (Van Buren County), with 1 station and 55 total personnel. According to HIFLD fire-station registry fields; among listable U.S. departments with reported personnel it ranks #3,261 of 22,440.
- National personnel rank #3,261 of 22,440
- MI personnel rank #58 of 1,008
- 1.82 stations per 100 personnel
- EMS provider (HIFLD)
- 13 other listed departments in Van Buren County
Sister Lakes Fire Department vs. the national personnel distribution
Where this department's HIFLD-reported staffing sits among every listable U.S. fire department
55 Top 15% higher than 85% 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 08012 · Sister Lakes Fire Department, MI 55 personnel · 1 station
PERS-MID · STA-1 · TYPE-VOL · EMS-Y · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · FEMA-NONE · BOOK-FULL
- PERS-MID 55
- STA-1 1 station
- TYPE-VOL Volunteer
- EMS-Y EMS on file
- RANK-UPPER #3,261
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Monroe Hose Compa…
- FEMA-NONE No AFG/SAFER
- BOOK-FULL 4/5 fields
Nearest personnel peer: Monroe Hose Company, PA (+ 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 MI department.
- Sister Lakes (this dept) 55
- High Westfield Volunte…, CT 55
- Near Monroe Hose Compa…, PA 55
- Near Linn Fire Protect…, MO 55
- Near Saint Robert City…, MO 55
Department Profile
- Type
- VOLUNTEER
- Location
- Dowagiac, MI
- County
- Van Buren County
- FDID
- 08012
Staffing vs the Michigan average
How Sister Lakes Fire Department's personnel count compares to the typical department in Michigan. In-state it ranks #58 of 1,008 by personnel among listable departments with reported staffing. Nationally it ranks #3,261 of 22,440 on the same basis as the largest-departments ranking.
- Stations
- 1
- State fire deaths/yr
- 112
- MI departments
- 1,274
County roster geometry
Van Buren County HIFLD mix around Sister Lakes Fire Department
Van Buren County: 14 departments, 430 personnel (14 volunteer / 0 career / 0 combination); EMS flag on 79% of departments. County / state rollup.
1.82 stations per 100 HIFLD personnel (1 station / 55 roster).
Photo-finish peer: Monroe Hose Company, PA (+0 personnel).
No FEMA AFG/SAFER awards on this FDID in USAspending (empty federal book).
Nearby Departments
Nationwide volunteer peers near 55 personnel
Photo-finish and same-type HIFLD neighbours for this FDID, not a reprint of every MI department.