The Department of Fire & Emergency Services (DFES) is a government department responsible for fire and emergency services in Western Australia. The department was created in 2012 in reaction to the 2011 Perth Hills bushfire.
The DFES is responsible for the management, training and funding of career and volunteer services, including:
Career Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS) 30 BGUs (Brigades, Groups and Units), 1,249 members Bushfire Brigade (BFB) 551 BGUs, 19, 987 members State Emergency Service (SES) 64 BGUs, 1,921 members Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services (VFES) 40 BGUs, 1,184 members Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service (VFRS) 93 BGUs, 2,369 members Marine Rescue Western Australia (MRWA) 39 BGUs, 1,677 members Public Service Officers and Technicians 658 members Updated as of October 2026**
The DFES currently employs 1,249 career firefighters and over 600 staff members, as well as over 29,000 volunteers in the six services state-wide.
There are also 2,579 members in the Emergency Services Cadets and Youth programs across five services.
History The Department of Fire and Emergency Services was formerly known as the Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia (FESA), a statutory government authority created in January 1999 to administer the following legislation within the state of Western Australia:
Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia Act 1998 Fire Brigades Act 1942 Bush Fires Act 1954 Emergency Services Levy Act 2002 Emergency Management Act 2005
The department was unaffected by the change in government following the 2017 Western Australian state elections.
Fire and Rescue Service of Western Australia
The inaugural meeting of the Fire Brigades' Board was held on 16 January 1899. This later led to the establishment of the Western Australian Fire Brigades' Board in 1909. Western Australian Fire Brigades updated their name in 1995 to Fire and Rescue Service of Western Australia to more accurately reflect the service provided to the communities of Western Australia.A Centenary of Service, The Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia, 1999
In 1999, the creation of FESA brought together the Fire and Rescue Service and the Bush Fire Service to form the Fire Services Division of FESA. The Fire and Rescue Service and Bush Fire Services actively maintain their original identities.
The Department of Fire and Emergency Services was established in 2012 and replaced FESA. Wayne Gregson (a former Western Australia Police assistant commissioner) was appointed the first Fire and Emergency Commissioner. The current headquarters are located at Stockton Bend in Cockburn Central. This building includes the state and metropolitan operations centres, state-wide communications centre, operations and capability commands and corporate services.
Structure The Department of Fire and Emergency Services operates under the Emergency Services Minister of the Government of Western Australia and is the Hazard Management Agency for cyclones, floods, storms, tsunami, structural collapses, HAZMAT incidents, earthquakes and fires. Their operational branch comprises metropolitan and country operations, operations capability, and oversees the listed services.
The Career Fire and Rescue Service of Western Australia consists of 1,249 paid firefighters working from 26 metropolitan stations and four country stations. Career firefighters attend a 21-week training course held at the academy in Forrestfield. They work on a roster of two 10-hour day shifts followed by two 14-hour night shifts and four days off. Metropolitan stations operate with at least one urban pumper and light tanker, with a crew of one station officer and three firefighters, while Perth Station does not run light tankers. Country stations operate with a crew of one station officer and five firefighters. Some metropolitan stations operate as relieving stations where two additional firefighters are on shift; these firefighters will fill short staffing at other stations if the need arises.
Appliance allocation is typically one Urban Pumper and one Light Tanker, with a second pump located at Perth, Vincent, Daglish, Fremantle, Welshpool and Bunbury. Two CLPs (Combined Ladder Platforms) are located at Perth and Fremantle stations. Two SET's (Specialised Equipment Tender) are located at Murdoch and Osborne Park. Four permanent Urban Tankers are located at Joondalup, Malaga, Cardup and Cockburn, with additional Urban Tankers added at Ellenbrook, Hope Valley, Midland, Kiara, Welshpool, Butler and Maddington, during the high threat period. The ICV (Incident Control Vehicle) is located at Belmont Station, The POD carrier is also located at Canning Vale for USAR CAT2 trained personnel.
The Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service (VFRS) is a volunteer service predominantly attending motor vehicle accidents, structure fires, and HAZMAT incidents in large urban areas. In 2024 the VFRS had 2,219 volunteer firefighters in 93 brigades across the state.
The Bush Fire Service is a volunteer service that attends any fire outside of a gazetted fire district within a brigade's local government area. They predominantly combat bushfires and conduct hazard reduction burning on a local level. , there are 551 Bushfire Brigades with 20,227 volunteers. 37 of these stations are located in the Perth metropolitan area.
The Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services is another volunteer service, established to combine the resources of any combination of a Bush Fire Service Brigade, a VFRS Brigade, MR Group or an SES Unit to replace the Volunteer Fire Services and Volunteer Emergency Service in 2016 It has 1,184 volunteers .
The State Emergency Service (SES) refers to a number of civil defence organisations that provide assistance during and after natural disasters and in search and rescue incidents where elevated equipment and skills are needed compared to more general emergency services. They attend land searches for missing people, storm damage, urban search and rescue, cliff rescue, road crash rescue, transporting personnel and equipment to fires as well as many other roles. The SES have a K9 unit with volunteers' dogs being trained in searching for missing people and a mounted unit for land searches. , they had 1,020 members and 64 units.
The Marine Rescue Service Western Australia is another volunteer service tasked with assisting the Western Australian Police with searches for missing people or vessels, assisting disabled vessels, and rescues in water around the state. there are 39 MRS Groups with 1,570 volunteers.
In April 2018, a new Rural Fire Division was established after the findings of the 2016 Waroona Bushfire Special Inquiry. It is another branch under the DFES structure and consists of:
Bushfire Centre of Excellence (training and research into Bushfire mitigation) State Bushfire Mitigation Bushfire Technical Services Land Use Planning Office of Bushfire Risk Management
Ranks and insignia +DFESTitleEpauletteHelmetCommissionerCrossed staffs in gold wreath with red background below a crown.Black 2 × white stripes on both sidesDeputy CommissionerCrossed staffs in gold wreath with red background below 3 pipsBlack 1 × white stripe on both sidesAssistant CommissionerCrossed staffs in gold wreath with red background below 2 pipsBlackChief SuperintendentCrossed staffs in gold wreath with red background below 1 pipSilver 1 × white stripe on both sidesSuperintendentCrossed staffs in gold wreath with red backgroundSilverDistrict Officer (Urban & Rural Fire)3 blue impellorsBlue 1 × white stripeDistrict Officer (Natural Hazards)3 gold pipsBlue 1 × white stripeArea Officer2 blue impellors below a bandBlueCommunity Emergency Services Manager (CESM)2 gold pips, local government name printed belowLime green 1 × white stripe on both sidesCareer Fire & RescueStation Officer (SO)2 blue impellorsRed 2 × blue impellors on both sidesLeading Firefighter3 yellow chevrons below 2 crossed red axesYellow 3 × yellow chevrons on both sidesSenior Firefighter – 15 years (SFF–15)3 × chevrons ( 2 × yellow above 1 × red) below 2 crossed red axesYellow 3 × chevrons ( 2 × yellow above 1 × red) on both sidesSenior Firefighter2 × yellow chevrons below 2 crossed red axesYellow 2 × yellow chevrons on both sidesFirefighter 1st & 2nd class1 × yellow chevron below 2 crossed red axesYellow 1 × yellow chevron on both sidesFirefighter 5th, 4th & 3rd class2 crossed red axesYellowTrainee FirefighterBlank coloured epauletteYellow Volunteer Fire & Rescue ServiceVFRS Captain3 × red bars below a red impellorLime greenVFRS Lieutenant2 × red bars below a red impellorWhite 1 × blue stripe on both sidesVFRS Apparatus Officer1 × red bar below a red impellorWhite 1 × green stripe on both sidesVFRS Secretary (Non-active)1 × yellow line above SECRETARY in writingVFRS Leading Firefighter3 × red chevrons below 2 crossed branchesWhiteVFRS Senior Firefighter2 × red chevrons below 2 crossed branchesWhiteVFRS Qualified Firefighter1 × red chevron below 2 crossed branchesWhiteVFRS Firefighter2 crossed branchesWhiteVFRS Ex Captain1 × yellow impellow above EX CAPTAIN in writingWhite
Stations Metropolitan Career fire stations. Along with the 26 career fire stations, there are 12 Volunteer Fire and Rescue stations located with in the Metropolitan Fire District. These stations are located at Armadale, Falcon, Kalamunda, Kwinana, Metropolitan VFRS (located at Forrestfield) Mandurah, Mundaring, Rockingham, Roleystone, Secret Harbour, and Yanchep. There are also four Volunteer Fire and Emergency Service stations, located at Baldivis, Bullsbrook, Karnup, and SWORD (State wide operational response division in Kewdale). StationAppliancesCo-located with VFRSPump + LTSpecialist & Support State Operational Support Fleet (SOSF)ArmadaleArmadale 1st (UPHR) Armadale LTArmadale 2nd VFRS HSR, LT and SOSF 3.4UTBelmontBelmont Pump (UP) Belmont LTBelmont ICV Foam TrailerButlerButler Pump (UPHR) Butler LTButler SOSF 3.4UTCanning ValeCanning Vale Pump (UP) Canning Vale LTUSAR PODCAR 1 & 3, with containersCardupCardup Pump (UPHR) Cardup LTCardup 3.4UTClaremontClaremont Pump (UP) Claremont LTCockburnCockburn Pump (UP) Cockburn LTFoam Trailer Cockburn 3.4UT
Cockburn RehabCockburn LT2DaglishDaglish 1st (UP) Daglish 1st LT
Daglish 2nd (UPHR)Daglish 2nd LTDuncraigDuncraig Pump (UP) Duncraig LTDuncraig LT2EllenbrookEllenbrook Pump (UPHR) Ellenbrook LTEllenbrook SOSF 3.4UTFremantleFremantle 1st (UP) Fremantle 1st LT
Fremantle 2nd (UPHR)
Fremantle 2nd LTFremantle CLP Foam TrailerHope ValleyHope Valley Pump (UPHR) Hope Valley LTHope Valley SOSF 3.4UTJoondalupJoondalup Pump (UP) Joondalup LTJoondalup 2.4UTKensingtonKensington Pump (UP) Kensington LTKiaraKiara Pump (UP) Kiara LTKiara SOSF 3.4UT or SOSF LTMaddingtonMaddington Pump (UP) Maddington LTMaddington SOSF 3.4UTMalagaMalaga Pump (UP) Malaga LTMalaga 2.4UTMandurahMandurah 1st (UPHR) Mandurah 1st LTMandurah 2nd VFRS 3.4UT, LT and Rescue TrailerMidlandMidland Pump (UPHR) Midland LTMidland SOSF 3.4UTMurdochMurdoch Pump (UP) Murdoch LTMurdoch SETOsborne ParkOsborne Park Pump (UP) Osborne Park LTOsborne Park SETPerthPerth 1st (UP) Perth 2nd (UP)Perth CLP Perth VRV
Perth OSV
DO PerthRockinghamRockingham 1st (UP) Rockingham 1st LTRockingham 2nd VFRS HSR, LT and 3rd LTVincentVincent 1st (UP) Vincent 1st LT
Vincent 2nd (UPHR)
Vincent 2nd LTVincent RehabWangaraWangara Pump (UP) Wangara LTFoam TrailerWelshpoolWelshpool 1st (UP) Welshpool 1st LT
Welshpool 2nd (UPHR)Welshpool SOSF 3.4UT Welshpool 2nd LT
Country Career fire stations StationAppliancesPump + LTSpecialist & Support State Operational Support Fleet (SOSF)AlbanyAlbany 1st (UPHR) Albany 1st LTAlbany 1st 3.4UT Albany UteAlbany 1st LT 2BunburyBunbury 1st (UPHR) Bunbury 1st LT
Bunbury 2nd (UPHR) Bunbury 2nd LT Bunbury 1st 2.4B Bunbury Ute
Bunbury CSR Trailer
Bunbury USAR Trailer
South West BA Trailer
Bunbury Foam Trailer