Montana City VFD
1192 Highway 282
Montana City, MT 59634
(406) 442-9828
Emergency Dial 911






How to Join

General Information

If you enjoy camaraderie, teamwork, and maybe a little hard work then joining the Montana City Volunteer Fire Department might be for you! Send us an application and we'd love to meet you and give you a tour of our operation.

But I'm too busy!

The single biggest concern we hear from potential members is that they're too busy to volunteer. We work to make sure our members time and energy is respected. Some of the ways we do this:
  • Training sessions are well planned and scheduled well in advance.
  • Our meetings and regular training sessions are generally on Wednesday evenings. We try to leave the rest of your the week free of fire department events.
  • We try to contract out ancially activities like snow plowing, building maintenance, and vehicle repair so our members can focus on our core mission: emergency response and training.
  • We limit the number of charity/outside events we participate in.
  • We are funded by property taxes so we do not have to conduct department fundraising events. (ie., you won't be manning a concession stand at a ball game)
So how much time does it actually take?

Not counting emergency calls the minimum time commitment (after the first year) is about 6 hours per month. Why don't we count emergency calls? There are a couple of reasons. First, they're very unpredictable. Second, you are not required to respond to any particular emergency call. We try to have enough members that if you're busy, or tired, or just don't feel like responding to that call you don't have to. So in effect, you choose how much time you volunteer for emergency calls.
  • One training sessions a month (3 hours x 12 = 36 hours)
  • One business meeting a month (2 hours x 12 = 24 hours)
  • One Equipment Checks a month (1 hour x 12 = 12 hours)
  • Total 72 hours per year (6 hours per month)


What about the first year?

To be able to operate safely on an emergency scene we're got to get you up to speed on a lot of material, so the first year does have more classes. In the winter we run a new member academy that is about 60 hours. It's conducted on evenings and weekend days, generally starting in December and ending in March. We require CPR certification and offer it multiple times in February. In the spring there is a two day (12 hour, Friday evening and Saturday) basic wildland firefighting course. Finally there are 9 hours of online Incident Command classes that you can take from home. If you can't make all of these classes in the first year, we'll certainly work with you, but may need to limit what types of emergency calls you participate in before you've completed the related training. It's required that they're completed by the end of your second year.

Can't wait to get started? Here's the ICS courses at training.fema.gov: ICS 100 ICS 200 ICS 700

Requirements

  • Fill out an Application (Download Application)
  • Be at least 18 years of age
  • Pass a criminal background check
  • Pass a driving record check
  • High School Graduate or equivalent
  • Live within 10 miles of a Montana City Fire Station
  • Must not be a member of any other volunteer fire department
  • Members wishing to participate in active firefighting are subject to mandatory medical checks.


Process

To join the Montana City Volunteer Fire Department you'll need to fill out our application. Applications are accepted at any time, but are only reviewed if there are vacancies in the department. Once we have reviewed your application and processed your background check you may be invited to begin the membership process.

Other Info

  • All necessary gear and training to members free of charge
  • We have a strong local tax support, federal grants, and dedicated members that ensures all of our equipment is up-to-date and well maintained; you'll never be asked to work in outdated or worn out equipment.
  • We offer at least 80 hours of training per year of which continuing members need to attend at least 30 hours.
  • Safety for our members and the public is always a focus of our training and operations
  • Only firefighters currently licensed as EMTs are paged to purely medical incidents. You choose if you want to do EMS.


How to get started!

If need any more information you can call us at 442-9828 or message us on our www.facebook.com/montanacityfire page.

If you know one of our members get in touch with them and ask, they're a great source of info.

You can download an application and get started on the membership process.

Being part of Montana City is very rewarding work. You'll meet new people, learn all kinds of interesting skills, and the camaraderie is great. Being part of your local fire department is a commitment of time and energy, but if you're in the right place in your life to join us the rewards are even greater.



Apply Now!