City of Westerville, OH
Home MenuFire and Rescue Operations
Fire and Rescue Operations include all fire, rescue and hazmat emergency operations. Fire and Rescue operations also manage division training and day-to-day operations such as maintenance of facilities, apparatus and equipment. Fire and Rescue Operations are overseen by Deputy Chief George Sorge.
Deputy Chief Sorge was hired in December 2019 as the Fire and Rescue
Operations Chief. Chief Sorge's career began in 1992 as a volunteer
in Martins Ferry, Ohio. He has over 25 years of full-time experience
in the fire service.
Chief Sorge served as a Lieutenant with
Norwich Township Fire Department prior to coming to Westerville. He
holds a BS in Fire Administration from Columbia Southern University.
He has earned the Ohio Fire Chief credential designation by the Ohio
Fire Chiefs Association.
ISO Class 1
The Westerville Division of Fire (WFD) holds a class 2 rating from the Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO). ISO rates fire departments/districts on a 10-point scale, with class 1 being the best possible rating and class 10 being the worst. WFD’s rating was upgraded from class 3 in April of 2016, which it held for about two decades.
ISO is a standardized, national rating system that evaluates and assigns a number on its scale regarding the condition of the community's fire protection systems. Only 1,060 of more than 48,000 fire departments across the nation have earned a class 2 designation.
ISO ratings provide guidance to insurance underwriters related to property risks associated with fire protection services. In addition to validating the quality of the department, this rating goes directly to the property insurance premiums insurers charge residential and commercial customers. ISO’s analysis considers suppression capabilities (staffing, equipment and station locations), fire prevention and code enforcement, training, emergency communications, building codes and the quality of the water distribution system.
A Focus on Training
Westerville firefighters are required by the State of Ohio to complete a required number of training hours over a three year period. Our firefighters train two hours per shift on topics selected by their shift Lieutenant. Once a month, the Deputy Chief of Fire and Rescue Operations selects a training topic that members and companies train on division-wide. Topics include fire hose management, ventilation, search and rescue, and technical rescue and hazardous materials operations.
Fire Reports
To obtain a fire report, email Chief Fire Marshal David Williams at david.williams@westerville.org or call (614) 901-6641.