Columbus Division of Fire

A residential fire early Tuesday morning damaged three homes in the 6700 block of Gormsley Drive, east of Gender Road, after flames spread from one property to two neighboring houses.

Crews from Columbus Fire, along with Truro, Violet and Madison Township fire departments, were called to the scene shortly after 5 a.m. The fire was quickly upgraded to a two-alarm response after exposure from the initial fire ignited the two adjacent homes.

No injuries were reported. Officials said 11 people were displaced, and the American Red Cross has been notified to assist those affected.

Approximately 35 emergency vehicles and about 100 firefighters responded to the incident.

Arson investigators said the fire began in the backyard. The cause remains under investigation.

Congratulations to Columbus Division of Fire Recruit Class 124 Blue Company on completing the Engine Operations portion of the training academy!

124 Blue Company is now entering the High-Rise Operations section of the academy as they continue preparing to serve the Columbus community.

Class 124 is scheduled to graduate from the training academy on Friday, Aug. 14.

Columbus Fire Station 36 is officially in service! On Tuesday, June 16, at 10 a.m., the Columbus Division of Fire held a grand opening ceremony for the state-of-the-art facility designed to support emergency response operations in one of the fastest growing areas of Columbus.

As Columbus continues its trajectory as the fastest growing major city in the Midwest, Fire Station 36 is strategically positioned to serve a five-mile area in the northeast portion of the city with a population exceeding 157,000 residents. That population is expected to experience continued growth in the years ahead, making the station a critical investment in the community’s future public safety needs.

“Fire Station 36 represents our commitment to growing alongside the communities we serve,” said Interim Fire Chief David Baugh. “This facility provides our firefighters with the resources, technology, and training space they need to deliver exceptional service while ensuring we are prepared to meet the demands of a rapidly expanding area of our city.”

Fire Station 36 is a 30,000 square-foot facility that includes four pull-through apparatus bays, living quarters for 15 personnel, office space for fire prevention personnel, fitness facilities, and dedicated training areas. The station will house Engine 36, Medic 36, Boat 36, and Station Truck 36.

The station’s basement includes office space for 10 fire prevention personnel and a fitness room. A dedicated training mezzanine was specifically designed for rope rescue, rescue operations, and “Save Your Own” training, providing firefighters with specialized hands-on training opportunities.

Fire Station 36 is the sixth Columbus fire station equipped with Zone Locution, a dispatch system that alerts firefighters only for incidents involving their assigned apparatus. The facility is also the first in the division to feature bi-fold apparatus bay doors. These doors open more quickly, require less maintenance, and reduce the likelihood of damage from responding apparatus.

The station was designed by Mull & Weithman Architects, Inc., constructed by Elford Construction, and supported through construction administration services by Ascension Construction Solutions. The project included approximately $1.8 million in design costs and $21.8 million in construction costs.

Members of the Columbus Division of Fire are using a soon-to-be-demolished building at Mill Run to sharpen their skills through extensive hands-on training.

Two-Unit crews are currently training inside the former Kenneth’s Salon building, which is scheduled for demolition and will be replaced by a Culver’s restaurant. The temporary use of the structure is giving firefighters an opportunity to work through realistic fireground scenarios in a setting that closely mirrors the challenges they may face during an actual emergency.

The first days of training were conducted in partnership with Norwich Township Fire. Trucks from across Columbus were brought to the site, allowing firefighters who do not typically respond to the same incidents to train together and build coordination across companies.

The effort was coordinated by Deputy Chief Sean Wooten, Battalion Chief Mark DelTosto and Firefighter Bryan Boone. Crews worked through a full fire assignment scenario that included hose advancement, Rapid Intervention Team scenarios and Saving Our Own disciplines focused on locating and rescuing a down firefighter.

Each training session lasted about an hour, but DelTosto said they were able to make the most of the limited time by placing many resources into a single scenario.

“We have a lot of resources in one scenario,” DelTosto said. “We’re training over 80 people every day on the unit, so that’s a lot.”

Having those resources in place allowed crews to train on complex scenarios, including advanced hose line deployments using larger lines that require two engine companies to deploy them. Crews also trained on mayday operations, while incident commanders and second battalion chiefs practiced coordinating with communications and managing the overall incident.

In-Service Training Captain Andrew Maynard praised the personnel who helped organize and deliver the training, noting the important role of the division’s unit training coordinators.

“We have three unit training coordinators, one for each unit. They are on-company trainers and they’re the ones that really do a lot of the legwork and coordinating and executing these trainings,” Maynard said. “Right now it’s Tony Coletta on One Unit, Bryan Boone on Two Unit and Tyler McFarland on Three Unit. They do a fantastic job along with Battalion Chief Jason Marshall and Battalion Chief DelTosto. So, just credit to all those individuals who are really taking a lot of initiative and putting together a lot of robust training for our companies.”

DelTosto said he was pleased with how crews performed.

“They did great,” DelTosto said. “We’re getting a chance to see companies use maybe different techniques in deploying their hose, but the same objective gets taken care of. We don’t want to pigeonhole companies into saying you have to do something a certain way. We just want the objective reached, and they’re doing that.”

DelTosto added that the shared incident command experience among participants helped strengthen the overall value of the training.

“Everybody is bringing their own incident command experience to the training, so they get to disseminate that to everyone,” DelTosto said. “It’s really creating just a good training experience.”

The Columbus Division of Fire was out early this morning helping make sure the grounds of the 2026 Columbus Arts Festival are safe and ready for the crowds!

Columbus Fire will be there all weekend to help keep everyone safe as visitors enjoy the art, performances, food and fun downtown. Festival hours are:

Friday: Open until 9 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m.–9 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.

We’ll see you at the festival!

Good Friday morning from the Columbus Division of Fire.

Columbus Fire Recruit Class 124 Blue Company has spent the last seven days learning the ins and outs of ladder operations, learning not only how to operate the truck, but also the responsibilities of each member of the ladder crew. Today, Blue Company takes the next step in the academy as they begin the Engine Operations portion of their training.