Answered by volunteers
Every response is staffed by on-call community members, not full-time firefighters. A roster of about thirty neighbors carries the whole coverage area.
ALL-VOLUNTEER
20 Underwood Ave · Montello
The volunteers four communities count on.
Montello Fire Department protects the City of Montello and the neighboring towns of Packwaukee, Shields, and Buffalo: an all-volunteer, paid-per-call crew answering from one station in Marquette County, Wisconsin.
The coverage map, in words
One department.
Four communities.
When the pager goes off, the same volunteer crew rolls for the city and for the towns around it. Two of those towns keep no department of their own. Montello is their fire protection.
MontelloCity of Montello. Home station, 20 Underwood Ave
Home station
PackwaukeeTown of Packwaukee. No department of its own
Relies on Montello
ShieldsTown of Shields. Served by the Montello crew
Covered by Montello
BuffaloTown of Buffalo. No department of its own
Relies on Montello
More ground. All volunteer. Always room for more hands.
Step up for the fourA neighbor-run department
No career shift waits at this station. The crew is made of local people who leave work, home, and dinner tables when the call comes in. That is what a paid-per-call volunteer department is.
One station, wide reach
Everything runs from the station at 20 Underwood Avenue in Montello, stretching out across the city and three surrounding towns in Marquette County.
Ready around the clock
Fires do not keep hours. The crew trains and turns out day or night, year in and year out, for whoever in the four communities needs them.
There is always room on the roster
Covering four communities with a volunteer crew takes hands. You do not need experience to start. You need to live nearby, be willing to train, and be ready to answer when the pager sounds. The department handles the training and the gear.
Paid-per-call means you are compensated for the calls and drills you run. It is not a career job. It is a way for people with regular jobs and families to keep their own towns protected.
- No firefighting experience required to begin
- Training and turnout gear provided by the department
- Compensated per call and per drill
- Serve the city or your own town: Packwaukee, Shields, or Buffalo
Know your department
In any emergency, call 911. For a fire, a crash, a rescue, or a medical emergency anywhere in Montello, Packwaukee, Shields, or Buffalo, 911 is the number. It pages the Montello volunteers and any mutual-aid help the situation needs.
Who shows up when I call?
Local volunteers. When 911 dispatches a call in the coverage area, Montello's paid-per-call crew is paged and responds from the Underwood Avenue station.
My town has no fire station. Am I covered?
Yes. The towns of Packwaukee and Buffalo have no department of their own. Montello is their fire protection, the same as it is for the city and the Town of Shields.
What is a paid-per-call department?
A crew of trained volunteers who are paged from their homes and jobs and paid for the calls they run, rather than career firefighters on shift at the station.
How can I help beyond calling?
Join the roster, or support the volunteers who serve your community. Reach the department through its Facebook page for the current ways to help.
Reach the department
- Emergency
- Call 911Fire, crash, rescue, or medical, anywhere in the coverage area
- Station
- 20 Underwood Ave, Montello, WI 53949PO Box 39, Montello, WI 53949
- Serving
- City of Montello · Towns of Packwaukee, Shields & BuffaloMarquette County, Wisconsin
- Online
- facebook.com/montellofireThe department's active public channel
Call 911
For non-emergencies, questions about joining, or community news, message the department on Facebook. No public non-emergency line was listed, so please do not use this concept page to report an emergency.
Open the Facebook pageThis is a design concept. It has no contact form and sends nothing.