Arlington Fire Department Publishes Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Report

Published on May 21, 2026

Arlington Fire Chief Bret Stidham recently presented the department’s Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Report to the Arlington City Council, highlighting a year of progress, innovation and continued commitment to protecting and serving the residents of Arlington’s 99-square-mile community.

Key accomplishments during Fiscal Year 2025 included the continued transition from three-person staffing to four-person staffing at single-engine stations, implementation of the Arlington EMS Whole Blood Program and expansion of the department’s ONE PEER support network.  

“In 2025, we made measurable improvements in how we respond to emergencies across our city,” Stidham said. “Through thoughtful evaluation of call types and strategic adjustments to unit response models, we have reduced response times and ensured the right resources are delivered to the right calls more efficiently. The continued implementation of four-person staffing has strengthened our operational effectiveness, enhanced firefighter safety, and improved outcomes for those we serve.”

Arlington Fire Department FY25 Annual Report(PDF, 25MB)

Additional highlights include:

• Arlington’s 9-1-1 Communications Division answered 363,439 total calls during FY25 and dispatched 296,386 police calls for service, 59,836 EMS ambulance calls, and 49,197 fire calls. Overall, 93.33 percent of 9-1-1 calls were answered within 10 seconds or less, an improvement from the previous year.
• Arlington EMS launched its prehospital Whole Blood Transfusion Program on Oct. 15, 2025, marking a major advancement in the department’s ability to provide life-saving care to patients experiencing hemorrhagic shock. During the program’s first three months of operation, EMS personnel administered 19 units of whole blood, helping stabilize critically injured patients during the crucial prehospital phase of care.
• The department’s PEER Program expanded into the ONE PEER concept, creating a unified support network for personnel across Suppression, Dispatch and Prevention divisions.
• Fire Prevention personnel completed 10,809 inspection-related activities, including annual fire inspections, certificates of occupancy, commercial building inspections and fire permit reviews.
• Arlington Fire Department personnel completed more than 18,552 hours of in-house continuing education and operational training focused on vehicle extrication, electric vehicle fire response, search and rescue operations, technical rescue, special operations and large-scale event preparedness.
• The department also expanded its Drone Response capabilities, utilizing unmanned aerial systems to enhance aerial overwatch and real-time situational awareness during emergencies and major public events, including New Year’s Eve celebrations, parades and Fourth of July activities.
• Arlington’s Wildland and All Hazards Team completed 16 statewide deployments during FY25, assisting with multiple wildfire incidents and supporting flood response operations during the devastating July 4 weekend flooding in Kerrville, Texas.
• The City’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated 93 times during FY25, including 88 severe weather monitoring activations, four special event monitoring activations and one full-scale exercise.