Hawaiʻi County Fire DepartmentLocal authority

The Hawaiʻi County Fire Department (HFD) is the primary emergency services agency providing fire suppression, pre-hospital emergency medical services, search and rescue, and hazardous materials response across the County of Hawaiʻi (the Big Island). Its public safety mandate covers more than 4,000 square miles of diverse geography—ranging from urban hubs to active volcanic rift zones, rugged coastlines, and high-altitude mountain terrain. Tracing its historical roots to organized volunteer firefighting companies in Hilo established in 1888 during the Kingdom of Hawaii and formally recognized by Queen Liliʻuokalani in 1893, the department was consolidated into a unified countywide public agency under the County of Hawaiʻi government in 1905.