Clark-Cowlitz Fire Rescue

Clark-Cowlitz Fire Rescue (CCFR) covers more than 125 square miles of north Clark County and south Cowlitz County in Southwest Washington, serving the cities of Ridgefield, La Center, and Woodland along with the Cowlitz Indian Reservation. The district responds to nearly 5,300 emergencies a year — fires, medical calls, rescues, and more — with a team of over 100 career firefighters, CARES staff, support volunteers, and administrative personnel operating out of stations spread across the district.

Beyond structural fire response, CCFR runs a critical care ambulance transport service and its CARES program (Community Assistance, Referrals and Education Services), which pairs community resource nurses and paramedics with a behavioral health crisis response effort aimed at connecting residents with services beyond a 911 dispatch. The district is governed by a five-member elected Board of Fire Commissioners and partners with Portland Community College on a fire science internship program, giving CCFR a pipeline into both traditional suppression roles and its growing community-paramedicine work.

Clark-Cowlitz Fire Rescue hires entry-level and lateral Firefighter/Paramedics and Firefighter/EMTs through the Public Safety Testing platform, alongside separate postings for Community Resource Nurses/Paramedics tied to its CARES behavioral-health crisis response program. The district also runs a support volunteer program and a fire-science internship partnership with Portland Community College.