Swatara Fire-Rescue

This afternoon Squad 91-5 crew stopped by Viva Senior living to visit a Life member and Make lunch for the residents and staff. They grilled about 100 hotdogs and visited our past chaplin Tom Fedor.

Engine 91 with assistance from Pumper Tanker 59 just wrapped up a vehicle on the off ramp from I-283 North to Lindle Road. Expect traffic delays in the area.

📊 Swatara Fire-Rescue May 2026 Monthly Overview

May was another busy month for Swatara Fire-Rescue as our members responded to 164 incidents, a 29% increase over May 2025. Through the first five months of 2026, STFR has answered 722 calls for service, placing us 22% ahead of last year's pace.

Despite the increased call volume and a significant rise in overlapping incidents, our crews maintained an average response time of 5 minutes, 14 seconds, remaining well within our goal of under six minutes. During May, STFR handled 40 overlapping incidents, a 43% increase from April, demonstrating the continued demand on our personnel and resources.

Our members contributed 4,757 staffing hours during the month, and have already logged more than 23,000 hours of service in 2026. These hours reflect the dedication of both our volunteer and career personnel who continue to answer the call day and night.

In addition to emergency response, our Community Risk Reduction efforts remained active with public education events, smoke detector installations, detector checks, and KnoxBox outreach throughout the township.

We would like to thank our firefighters, fire police, support personnel, mutual aid partners, and the residents we serve for their continued support. Your commitment helps us fulfill our mission of protecting our community, striving for excellence, and making data-driven decisions to better serve Swatara Township and our surrounding communities.

🚒 164 Incidents in May
⏱️ 5:14 Average Response Time
🤝 60 Mutual Aid Incidents
👨‍🚒 69 Active Personnel
📈 722 Incidents Year-to-Date

You can view our full report at the following link
https://canva.link/ustofop6hbcp2a2

Engine and Squad 91-5 had a great time today at the annual End-of-Year Bash at Rutherford Elementary School! The crews enjoyed spending time with students, staff, and families as everyone celebrated the end of another successful school year. The event featured games, activities, and plenty of fun for the students as they kicked off their summer break.

Thank you to Rutherford Elementary for inviting us to be part of the celebration. We always enjoy opportunities to connect with our community and showcase the apparatus and equipment that help us serve Swatara Township every day.

Swatara Fire-Rescue responded to two fires overnight!

The first response occurred in the evening when Tower 91 was dispatched to assist the Lower Paxton Township Bureau of Fire as the Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) for a reported structure fire. Tower 91 personnel remained on scene for approximately one hour before returning to service.

Then, just after 2:00 a.m., Engine 91, Tower 91, and Air 91 were dispatched to a reported house fire in Steelton Borough. Engine 91 arrived as the first-due engine company and quickly deployed an attack line to begin fire suppression operations. Crews worked alongside mutual aid partners to bring the fire under control and complete overhaul operations. Swatara units operated on scene for nearly two hours before returning to the township.

It’s been a busy start to the week for Swatara Township Fire-Rescue. Monday and Tuesday, STFR crews responded to 13 incidents across the Township and surrounding mutual aid areas.
Among those incidents, Air 91 responded to a working house fire in Londonderry Township.

While crews operated on the fireground, Squad 91 transferred to Station 88 to provide coverage for the area. During that time, crews that remained in the Township also handled a local fire alarm assignment, ensuring uninterrupted protection for our residents.

Our UAS Division also had an active two days supporting regional operations. On Monday, the team spent nearly 10 hours assisting the Harrisburg Bureau of Fire with operations on the Susquehanna River. Tuesday, the UAS Division was back in action for an additional 5 hours in Londonderry Township assisting crews operating at a silo fire.

We are proud of the dedication and professionalism shown by all of our personnel as they continue to serve both our community and our mutual aid partners.

Please join us in congratulating Firefighters Colby Speck, Kevin Huber, and Nick Brown on successfully completing their Interior Firefighter class, which concluded today with a live fire burn evolution.

Over the course of the program, these members dedicated countless hours to hands-on training, classroom instruction, and developing the skills needed to operate safely and effectively on the fireground.

The hard work does not stop here — all three firefighters will soon be testing for their Firefighter 1 Certification.

Congratulations gentlemen, and best of luck on your upcoming certification testing! 🚒🔥

This morning Squad 91-5 attended the annual Memorial Day Service at Veterans Circle in Rutherford.

Today, we pause to remember and honor the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation. Their courage and dedication will never be forgotten.

While members attended the ceremony, Swatara Fire-Rescue remains staffed with three crews today and ready to respond to the needs of our community.

Thanks To Jessa Veronica Ivy for use of the photo.

This evening members of Swatara Fire-Rescue, Colonial Park Fire Co. #1, Paxtonia 34 Fire Company and Rescue Fire Company gathered at Progress Fire 32 for the annual Expo Weekend dinner.

The men and women who regularly run box alarms together had the opportunity to break bread and spend an evening building camaraderie and Brotherhood outside of the emergency scene. After dinner, crews loaded up and made a stop at Rita's Italian Ice to enjoy dessert together.

Thank you to Progress Fire for organizing the evening and extending the invitation. Strong partnerships and relationships built off the fireground continue to strengthen the teamwork displayed on the fireground.