Skip to main content

History

In 1956, five Hartsel residents got together to form a volunteer fire department. In 1970, residents incorporated the department as the Hartsel Fire Protection District, under the special district laws of Colorado.

Today, Hartsel Fire Protection District serves approximately 1237 residents and the thousands of property owners and hundreds of thousands of visitors who come to recreate in, or just pass through, our beautiful mountain valley. Our service area covers about 750 square miles in the southern portion of South Park—from the top of Wilkerson Pass to the top of Trout Creek Pass, and from the Red Hill Subdivision on Highway 9 north of town, to mile marker 32 south of town on Highway 9.

firefighters practicing fire containment with a wrecked car


Our staff and volunteers are trained not only to put out fires, but also to respond to a variety of other emergency calls. We are trained first responders and we have a trained dive team and boat-rescue team to respond to calls for assistance at Antero Reservoir, 11-Mile Reservoir, and Spinney Reservoir. We also have trained staff and volunteers to respond to hazardous waste spills.