The Falmouth Fire Department was established in 1897. At one point in the early years, the fire department occupied 10 "fire stations," including some being simply rented storage barns for hose reels, ladder wagons, and chemical engines.

     The modern era of the fire department began in the 1920s as the department motorized.

Station 1 - Falmouth - The central fire headquarters station was first built at 399 Main Street in 1929. That station was added onto and completely renovated in 2002. It was home to a modern fire alarm and communications room until Jan 2017 when it was moved to a consolidated Comm Center at the Falmouth Police Department.

Station 2 - Woods Hole - The original Woods Hole station on Water Street was replaced when a new Woods Hole Fire Station 2 was built at 419 Woods Hole Road in 1976.

Station 3 - North Falmouth - The original single bay wooden North Falmouth station was replaced in 1950 by the 2 bay brick fire station that is still currently in use at 204 Old Main Street @ Wild Harbor Road.

Station 4 - West Falmouth - In 1930, a single bay brick and wood fire station was built at 555 West Falmouth Highway (Route 28A) @ Blacksmith Shop Road. It is currently still in use, but has been the subject of discussion for years. The station, even after making every effort to raise and widen the apparatus door, is simply not well designed or equipped for modern apparatus. It was scheduled to be closed in 2019-2020. Community concerns and additional budget funding have managed to keep the station staffed most of the time.

Station 5 - East Falmouth - In 1930, another single bay wooden fire station was built in East Falmouth on Route 28. It housed Engine 5 and a Tank truck for years. In 1980, the current East Falmouth Fire Station and Mechanic Shops opened at 505 East Falmouth Highway.

     For many years, Falmouth had minimal on duty staffing, with only (1) on duty firefighter at Station 2, 3, 4, and 5. As ambulances were assigned to stations other than HQ, staffing increased to (2) firefighter/paramedics at Station 2, 3, and 5, with still only (1) at Station 4.

     These were supported by a considerable group of Call Firefighters (20-30) and off duty callback at each station. In recent years, the availability of those additional personnel has greatly decreased and incidents are almost completely done by on duty personnel. The department has had to do quite a bit of hiring to get staffing up to a minimal acceptable level to handle the ever increasing call volume.
 

HATCHVILLE FIRE STATION

     A large portion of Falmouth, north of East Falmouth and east of North Falmouth, is known as Hatchville. As far back at the 1980s, there were repeated "unsuccessful" efforts to get a fire station built in Hatchville. As the discussion and controversy over potentially closing or combining one or both of the North (Station 3) and West (Station 4) station, approval finally came for a Hatchville Fire Station.

     On May 17, 2022, Falmouth voters approved about $10 Million for a brand new 11,000 square foot 3 bay, double deep one story fire station to be built at 878 Sandwich Road in Hatchville. The lot was finally cleared and construction begun in the Spring of 2023. The new station is anticipated to open in Summer 2024. It is located in an area within improved response times which will be able to support many incidents in a greater portion of Falmouth.

     No doubt, the discussion on what needs to be done with the North and West Falmouth stations will continue. Whether ultimately those two stations combine into one future new station or some other solution is yet to be determined. In the mean time, a "6th" Station is planned to be staffed when opened.