Rescue 1, Portland Maine Fire Department

02/27/2026

01/31/2026

We remember Captain John F. Rafferty, Badge No. 5, who on this day in 1972 died in the line of duty. Captain Rafferty joined the department in 1941, was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in 1947 and was promoted to captain in 1960. Assigned to Rescue 1, Captain Rafferty collapsed while returning from a medical emergency and subsequently passed away. He was 59 years old.

The department's "Officer of the Year" Award is named in his honor.

For his supreme sacrifice he is remembered, and in the dedication and courage of all our active and retired members, and all firefighters past and present, his spirit lives on.

01/23/2026

Congratulations to all members on their recent promotions, Lt Verril is one of our members from platoon 1 and Lt Furlong is one of our members from platoon 4. Dc Marshall is also a support member from Platoon 4. Congratulations all.

01/13/2026

Run numbers from 2025

In 2025, the Portland Fire Department responded to 19,677 calls for service - an average of 53.91 calls per day - each one representing a neighbor, visitor, or business in need of help.

The graphic below highlights how that workload is distributed across our stations and apparatus citywide, reflecting the wide range of calls our crews handle every day.

Since 1768, the Portland Fire Department has been a constant presence in this community. As the City of Portland, Maine continues to grow and change, our members remain dedicated to answering the call with professionalism, teamwork, and pride.

01/05/2026

With profound sadness and with heavy hearts the department regrets to announce the passing of retired PFD Lieutenant John Kooistra. Lt. Kooistra joined the department in December 1990 and was promoted to lieutenant in 2004, a rank he held until his retirement in January 2019 when he joined the Windham, Maine Fire Department as Deputy Chief.

With his retirement, Lt. Kooistra left behind a large legacy with our department, especially in the area of MedCU and EMS operations. Lt. Kooistra was a founding, driving force behind our Infection Control program, our tactical medicine program including embedding paramedics with the Portland Maine Police Department’s SRT team, our QA/QI program, the Paramedic Bike Team, the Child Passenger Safety Technician Team, monthly Grand Rounds training directly with our medical director, and was part of the initial collaborative work with City of Portland Health and Human Services in 2016 responding to the increase in overdose activity that eventually led to the creation of our community outreach program called Mobile Medical Outreach, or MMO. Beyond these contributions to our department and many more to Maine EMS, John was a mentor, a good friend, regularly promoted morale through having fun at work, and was a much-beloved coworker to so many. He will be sorely missed by all.

Our thoughts are with his family, our brothers and sisters on the Windham Fire Department, and the entire EMS community in Maine as we mourn this tremendous loss.

12/30/2025

12/27/2025

Third alarm from last night. Platoon 2 was on duty.

12/07/2025

Morning Runs!

11/27/2025

Happy Thanksgiving from our firehouse to yours. Thank you to the members who are away from their families to protect the citizens of Portland today and everyday.

11/26/2025

Rescue 1 members getting their hands dirty.