Firefighting is demanding work, with terrific rewards. Firefighters are America’s greatest living heroes. They protect the lives and properties of their neighbors. They perform daring rescues and extinguish raging infernos, but firefighters also protect people in many other ways. Firefighters play an important role in education and public awareness of fire safety. All this in addition to putting out house fires!

On any given day ZCVFD may be called upon for:

• Structure fires
• Animal rescues
• Brush fires
• Car fires
• Gas leaks
• Hazardous material spills
• Medical Helicopter Landing Zones
• Vehicle Accidents
• And more!

To qualify for the position of volunteer firefighter, an individual must:

• Must be aged 16 for Junior Membership or 18 years old with a high school diploma for Standard Membership.
• Meet the active membership requirements or bylaws of ZCVFD.
• Successfully complete required probation or training needs.
• The Firefighter I course is a 99 hour class that consists of a combination of classroom study, scenarios and modular practical experiences that will prepare the firefighter to carry out most fireground functions under the direct supervision of an officer or experienced firefighter. The scenarios are designed to train the student in realistic fireground operations. Prerequisites: Students must be at least 16 years of age in order to complete all aspects of the course. Junior Firefighters must comply with all Junior Firefighters prerequisites as defined by Department of Labor and Industry standards.

ZCVFD Provides:

• All protective gear and pagers.
• Injury compensation under The Volunteer Firefighters Benefit Law.
• Company – and state-sponsored training.
• Social/organizational benefits.
• The probationary period for a firefighter regardless of prior experience is 6 months.
• In order to drive any ZCVFD apparatus, the driver must pass a Driver Release Program, be 21 years or older, deemed a safe and acceptable driver by the Department Insurance Company and hold a valid Virginia Emergency Vehicle Operators Certificate (EVOC).
• If you have experience, please provide copies of all Fire, HazMat, Special Rescue and CPR certificates when you complete the application.

The EMS side of our department is currently our greatest need.

The Emergency Medical Technician – Basic course is designed to provide training to prepare an individual to function independently in a medical emergency. This course provides the basic knowledge and skills needed to provide basic life support (BLS) care and is required to progress to more advanced levels of pre-hospital patient care. Eligibility to attend an Emergency Medical Technician-Basic course in Virginia requirements can be found here.

The course requires a minimum of 111 hours of classroom and skills instruction and 10 hours of Clinical/Field rotations for a total of 121 hours of training. Virginia Certification requires successful completion of a written and practical skills examination. This course is designed to train individuals to serve as a vital link in the chain of the health care team. This includes all skills necessary to provide emergency medical care as an attendant-in-charge with a basic life support ambulance service or other specialized rescue service. Click here for a schedule of upcoming classes in the area or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

ZCVFD Provides:

• All EMS gear and pagers.
• Flexible running hours.
• Free of charge department, local and state-sponsored training.
• Social/organizational benefits.

We ask that you provide:

• A desire to help the community.
• Be at least 16 years old with a copy of your current (and hopefully great) High School Report Card.
• Be willing to commit to respond to calls as you can.
• Be available to attend monthly membership and training meetings.

Once you have successfully passed the Virginia EMT-B certification, you must complete ZCVFD's Releasing Program in order to become an Attendant In Charge (meaning that as an AIC, you have full responsibility of the patient in the back of the ambulance from the scene - all the way to the hospital.) Once you have been an EMT-B for at least one year, you can continue your training to become an Advanced Life Support provider.

For people who have EMS training; copies of your current EMT certificate, CPR card and driver's license are required to start your application process.

The Auxiliary is the backbone of our Department. They help with fundraising, public awareness and host special community events. They are a very active group of dedicated volunteers that are always on the lookout for more people to invite into their warm family-type atmosphere. If the idea of going inside burning buildings or seeing blood makes you queasy, then the Auxiliary is for you.

We asked some of the Auxiliary members what it means to volunteer their time to the department. Here's what they said:

To me, it is giving of your time and effort to make a difference in your community. We try to have events that the community will enjoy, and we can raise much needed money for the Fire Deptartment. We also are there for each other when crisis arises within our groups. We rely on each other, and work hard to get events completed, and successful. We always need more members (donating whatever amount of time they can). I can truly say that this group of individuals are more like a family when things need to be done. I am very blessed to know each of these members. - Cathy Dennison

I find belonging to Auxiliary to be active in my neighborhood, helping to make the Fire Department grow to expand our services to the community. It gives me a satisfied feeling to be doing for others. It is a good feeling to have an extended family to care about. - Fran Landgraff

Being a member of the Auxiliary gives me a sense of accomplishment and a feeling of helping others. Although we all don't have all of the time we feel we need to do as much as we can, if all of us can give just a little it makes a big difference. The time we get to spend working on projects together makes it seem as if we have an extended family. We enjoy our time together and it gives us a break from just worrying about our everyday lives. This is something I look forward to doing and try to make the time for it. - Sharon Poore