Fire Station #1 is the City’s largest and busiest firehouse. It was originally built in 1967 at the same time as the adjacent Fire Administration Building.

The Fire Administration building was torn down in July 2013 and reopened in the new Ovation building on Dayton Street in December 2015.

Fire Station #1 is a double-company house and the home base for the Madison Fire Department's Lake Rescue Team.

Equipment

• Engine 1 – a 2016 Pierce Quantum Pumper. It has a 1,250 gallons-per-minute fire pump and a complement of ground ladders, fire hose, and tools. In addition, Engine 1 carries emergency medical equipment including a defibrillator, oxygen, and immobilization gear.
• Ladder 1 – a 2020 Pierce Ascendant 107-foot tiller aerial ladder with computerized hydraulics. Has a 1500 gallon-per-minute flow rate when flowing the aerial master stream via relay from another engine.  
• Car 31 – a 2015 Suburban LT. The Command car is used by the Officer in Charge (OIC) to respond to significant incidents including structure fires, rollover vehicle crashes requiring extrication, and other incidents requiring the intervention of the Department’s Special Teams
• Lake Rescue SCUBA 1 –
  • 2020 Midwest Rescue Airboat, named "Yapper," featuring a 427 ci LS7 650hp engine with Holley Dominator EFI system, twin axle system, galvanized design, and 9" Garmin 922 touch screen mapping system.
  • 24-foot 2015 Lake Assault Rescue Boat - Marine One, named "The Ralph Chamberlin II," fully equipped with state-of-the-art RADAR, SONAR, and FLIR thermal imaging system. It has a 500 gallon-per-minute attack pump for fire suppression.
• Utility 1 – 2002 GMC3500 Utility Truck used to tow the Lake Assault boat to emergency calls
• Car 52 – a 2004 Chevy pick-up truck designated for the on-duty Captain
• 16-foot Tracker Jon Boat-Marina Two – Auxiliary fire-rescue boat equipped with fire pump.

Daily Staffing

The double-company personnel requirement at Station #1 includes:

• 2 Lieutenants, one for the ladder and one for the engine
• 2 Apparatus Engineers (drivers), one for the ladder and one for the engine
• 4 Firefighters, two for the ladder and two for the engine
• 1 OIC. This is a member of the Command Staff (Assistant or Division Chief) assigned to Car 31 for on-scene incident management.
• 1 Chief's Aide assisting the OIC and driving Car 31
• 1 Captain
• The Lake Rescue Team: 57 certified rescue divers (6 divers on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year)