The Washington State Firefighters Association awarded the Ephrata Fire Department the “Volunteer Fire House of the Year” for 2025. Retired Chief Don Fortier presented the award. From left to right are volunteers Emily Grace, Logan Anderson, Jake Wezenberg and Nigel McNeill, Fortier, Fire Chief Jeremy Burns, and volunteers Colleen Winski and Darren St. Clair.
January 7, 2026
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Ephrata Fire Department reflects on 2025
Increase in calls, new equipment and future EMS funding challenges
EPHRATA — The Ephrata Fire Department experienced a busy year in 2025, responding to a total of 513 calls for service. Fire Chief Jeremy Burns provided an overview of these calls, revealing that approximately 65% were related to Emergency Medical Services, while only 10% were actual fire calls. The remaining 25% fell into various categories such as fire alarms, elevator rescues and hazardous conditions. “The bulk of our responses still falls right in that close to 70% category of EMS calls, which is where we’ve been training for years,” Burns said. In comparison to previous years, Burns indicated that call volume saw a slight increase. The department previously contracted with American Medical Response ambulance services, during which their call load averaged around 550 calls. After switching to Lifeline ambulance services in July 2023, Ephrata witnessed a reduction of almost 100 calls for service, primarily due to differences in the types of calls each service handled.