Crystal Lakes Volunteer Fire Department personnel are split between Firefighters and Special Duty Responders.

CLVFD firefighters are required to attend at least thirty-six hours of training per year.  For the past three years, firefighters have averaged fifty-five hours of training per year, well above what is required.  In addition to training on department equipment and structure fire scenarios, firefighters are offered training in Ice Rescue and Medical First Response, and are required to take the Forest Service S-130 and S-190 classes: Introduction to Wildland Fire Behavior and Basic Wildland Firefighter Training.  All trainings are open to special duty responders, many of whom have taken advantage of the opportunity to learn how to better support the firefighters.

Crystal Lakes Volunteer Fire Department firefighters and special duty responders carry pagers and radios and are expected to respond to all fire and medical calls for which they are available. All department members are required to inform an officer of the department if they will be out of district or otherwise unable to respond to calls.

Medical services are contracted to Red Feather Lakes Volunteer Fire Department's Quick Response Team, but CLVFD firefighters must also respond to all medical calls in our district. Medical First Responders report to the scene of the incident while other firefighters respond to the fire station. Firefighters respond with a structure engine to establish and secure a landing zone for the MedEvac helicopter, if necessary, and may be called upon to assist with patient transport on scene or report to the Red Feather station to secure a landing zone there.

All smoke reports and smoke or fire alarms are investigated by Crystal Lakes firefighters and special duty responders. These may require department members to track down the source of smoke from areas in the outer edges of our district or the surrounding National Forest. If we are first on-scene to a fire in the National Forest, we will fight the fire until Forest Service or Larimer County Emergency Services arrive. Our continued presence on-scene after other fire services arrive is dependent on whether those agencies require our assistance.

CLVFD firefighters respond to all wildland and structure fires in our district. Through a mutual aid agreement with Red Feather Lakes Volunteer Fire Department, we may request their assistance, and they may request ours for fires in their district. Our departments work together to fulfill these mutual aid agreements and keep our two communities safe.

All firefighters are provided with Personal Protective Equipment including bunker/structure coats, pants, boots, helmets and gloves, wildland shirts, pants, boots, helmets and gloves, wildland fire shelters and packs, wildland belt weather kits, first aid kits, MREs, flashlights, and other necessary safety equipment. The department is equipped with SCBAs (Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus) and a cascade system of filling the air-tanks, an ice rescue sled, three ice rescue suits, ropes and other equipment necessary to effect a cold-water or ice rescue.

CLVFD is a close-knit community of volunteers dedicated to preserving the safety of department emergency personnel and the community, and proud to be continually striving to be better trained, better equipped, and better able to fulfill our obligations to the community.

We are always in need of new firefighters. Please consider joining us!