"Share in the Pride"
The official website of the Mount Horeb Volunteers Inc. and the Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services.
Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department and EMS will host a silent parade of decorated fire trucks down Main Street Mount Horeb. We will end the parade at Grandma Foster’s Park where the holiday tree will be illuminated. Parade starts at 5:00 pm from Cox Drive. Santa is expected to make an appearance.
FDMH wishes you a safe and happy holiday season.
THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
FDMH is hosting a Citizens Fire Academy. This is the first annual event with our goal to show what firefighters and EMTs do for our community. Our Citizens Fire Academy will be a six session program designed to give community members an overview of how our local fire department operates. There will be lots of hands-on participation. Classes meet on Thursday nights during the summer, from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm. The purpose of our academy is not to train an individual to be a firefighter, but to produce informed citizens and build long-lasting relationships with residents in our community.
Only the first 12 qualified applicants will be accepted to the 2023 program. Click to fill out the form for more information and to apply:
On Thursday, June 1st we will host a screening of a new documentary, and learn what it takes to be a volunteer firefighter. Watch the movie on a big screen before the national premiere this fall! Come learn more about FDMH and what we do to keep our community safe.
Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat
June 1st, 2023 6:30 pm at the Mount Horeb Public Safety Building
Check out the trailer here: https://oddhoursfilm.com/teaser
You’re invited to our annual holiday parade and tree lighting on Saturday, December 3rd 2022. A silent parade of decorated fire trucks will move through the Mount Horeb downtown, starting at 5:00 pm. The parade ends at Grandma Foster Park, where a holiday tree will be illuminated.
We expect a visit from Santa, who will be there to help us light the tree and shake hands with all his fans. After the tree lighting, check out some of the other events around town as part of Merry Mount Horeb.
The Fire Truck Parade and Tree Lighting is sponsored by the Mount Horeb Volunteers. We wish all a Safe and Happy Holiday Season.
Looking to help your community? To make a difference when a disaster strikes – be it a car accident, a heart attack, or storm damage? Want to be able to handle emergencies calmly? Be ready for when your friends or family get sick or injured? We rely on volunteers to answer the call every single day.
The Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department Emergency Medical Services is looking for reliable volunteers to serve as ambulance drivers. If you want to be a part of a life saving team you are perfect for us.
EMS Drivers provide driving expertise to get the ambulance to and from the emergency scene, to the hospital and back home safely. Drivers also assist with loading and unloading the patient from the ambulance, and assisting the EMTs with equipment.
The on-boarding process is fairly simple. The first step in the process is to fill out an application. All training for the drivers will be provided in-house, working around the driver’s schedule. Our volunteer drivers work shifts in the weekday evenings and on the weekends.
Volunteers receive a uniform and a small nominal fee while covering on pager or at the station. While on duty, volunteers must be able to respond to the Public Safety Building within five minutes of a page. There is also the option to stay at the station in our sleeping quarters. Drivers are encouraged to be at least 21 years old and must be able to pass a background check.
To apply complete a membership application available at https://fdmh.org/recruitment
This year, FDMH will be changing our typical annual event to be more socially distant. We will only have our Holiday Parade of emergency apparatus, followed by a Tree Lighting. We are back up on Main Street in conjunction with the Village's Holiday Weekend. The date is Saturday, December 4th.
The parade will be on Main Street, starting at 5:00 pm. We will stop at Grandma Foster’s Park for the Lighting of the Tree. Our event ends there, but check out other events happening in Mount Horeb that weekend. Hope to see you there.
Updated 11/19/2020:
Oh, you better watch out.
You'd better not cry.
But Santa and Dane County Public Health think it's safer inside.
Santa Clause is going to canceeeeeel, coming to town.
He's taking letters and snowflakes!
He's excited about that!
Send or drop them at the fire station,
So he can write you right back!
Christmas is still gonna happeeeen, this year!
He knows that it's a bummer!
But we can't let it ruin our day.
Donations to the Giving Tree,
Will help out this season in a super! big! way! HEY!
Letters will go out in the mail!
Snowflakes will decorate a tree!
Check FB for pictures, So everyone can see!
Have them to the fire department, by 12/15!
https://mhgivingtree.weebly.com/virtual-giving-tree.html
Send letters for Santa to:
Mount Horeb Fire & EMS
400 Blue Mounds Street
Mount Horeb, WI 53572
Or, drop them at the front entrance, look for the drop box. Santa will be able to answer letters received before 12/15, after that he gets real busy loading the sled.
Also drop off paper snowflakes you can make for our holiday tree.
In light of the current COVID-19 pandemic, and in the interest of keeping our community safe, the members of FDMH, have made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 Fourth of July Kiddie Parade.
It was not an easy decision for any of us to make. This event is a time to bring families, friends and community together. We truly enjoy having everyone come out to the station for the short jaunt around the park and treats at the station afterwards.
To celebrate our Independence Day, we will be flying the red, white and blue from our Truck 1 outside the station. If you drive by, give us a wave!
We sincerely appreciate the continued support you all have given us over the years. We look forward to bringing you this event again in 2021!
Stay Safe and Healthy
Please enjoy these pictures of Fourth of July parades from the past. The parade was previously hosted on Center Avenue until the early 1990s, when we moved to the station on South 1st Street.
Effective March 27, 2020 all DNR burning permits are suspended until further notice. Click the link below to see the FAQ from the DNR. In the MHAJFD territory, this affects the Town of Vermont and the top sections in the Town of Blue Mounds. Individual municipalities may also issue burn restrictions. Please check with your municipality before burning.
Please consider the consequences of an out of control grass or brush fire and practice safe burning if allowed.
Due to concerns with community spread of COVID-19 we are not open to visitors. Sorry for any inconvenience. Please be assured that we are taking this action out of abundance of caution for the health and well-being of our emergency responders and community.
If you need to interact with the office staff, please call us at 608-437-5571, option 2.
If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, please begin by calling your primary health care provider. Most people can and should manage symptoms at home. If you arrive at our building to seek medical care, you will be met in the vestibule through the glass doors for primary evaluation. Please understand our concerns with the spread of this disease. These precautions are for the health and safety of both you and our EMS members as we try to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our community. We appreciate your cooperation.
The Mount Horeb Area School District (MHASD), Madison College and FDMH have partnered together and are going to hold a pilot High School EMT class this coming fall semester. This class will involve 9 members of the 2020 Senior class.
Four years ago FDMH started the "Student Volunteer" program. This program is for high school Juniors and Seniors, 16 and older, and was set up for helping high school students learn about the fire department and volunteering with FDMH. The program grew with the help of Madison College and there are now high school "Fire Academies" that have been taught at Madison College, Baraboo and this past spring Mount Horeb. FDMH has nine members that are in or have completed the Student Volunteers program and are actively volunteering with FDMH.
This past winter, work began on trying to develop an EMT class for the high school students. Through lots of meetings and effort, Mount Horeb was chosen for the pilot program that will take place this fall. We have 9 Seniors that are interested in taking the class. This was larger number than all parties originally thought. The MHASD only was able to find money to cover the classroom part for 6 students. This does not count the required book bundle for the class. That leaves 3 students that we need to find money for the entire class and book bundle.
We do not want to exclude any of these young people because of funding. They will be learning life saving skills that will allow them to help others in our community or wherever they are.
If you would like to make a donation, there is an account set up at the State Bank of Cross Plains; it is the FDMH Volunteers - High School EMT account. You can also send it to or drop off a donation at the Public Safety Building, 400 Blue Mounds St. Funds given to this account will be used to pay for the class, book bundles and any remaining funds will be used to purchase turnout gear for the students to allow them to volunteer with FDMH. We have a goal of a minimum of $9,000.
If you have questions on the program or how you can donate, please contact Eric Brinkmann at 437-5571.
Mount Horeb Area Fire Department and EMS
30th Annual Lighting of the Tree
Saturday, December 8th at 5PM
The silent parade of decorated fire trucks down Main Street will end at Grandma Foster’s Park where the tree will be illuminated. A community wide pot luck at the fire station will follow the tree lighting. All are welcomed to attend.
Recent reports indicate as many as 40 million extinguishers, some sold almost 4 decades ago, have been recalled for potential problems related to operation. The extinguishers, made by Kidde from 1973 to Aug. 15, 2017 have the potential to "clog" and fail to spray when needed according a report released by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. This recall includes extinguishers from a previous recall in March 2009 and February 2015. The problems are related to popular ABC and BC models sold and marketed for residential applications, commercial trucks and recreational vehicles and boats.
With the "clogging" problem, and the contents being under pressure, the nozzle has the potential to come off with enough force to cause injury. According to the report, there have been 391 reports of extinguishers failing to operate causing 16 injuries and one related death. Furthermore, 91 reports of property damage have been reported linked to the problem.
The recalled extinguishers were sold in a variety of locations including Menards, Sears, Home Depot and Wal-Mart as well as in many hardware stores and online retailers such as Amazon.
Owners can contact Kidde to inquire about extinguishers that may be included in the recall and ask for a free replacement. Have the extinguisher handy when calling as a serial number and/or date code (located on the extinguisher) may be needed to identify problem extinugishers. Kidde can be reached at (855) 271-0773 or online at www.kidde.com
Tuesday, December 5th in the cold and brutal winds, the official Groundbreaking Ceremony was held for the Mount Horeb Public Safety Building. Many braved the weather to celebrate with us. Thanks to all who attended to help us mark the occasion.
The funding made available by the 2016 AFG will allow the MHAJFD to purchase a mobile training facility which is a key piece of equipment to train our firefighters and firefighters from neighboring communities. The funding will cover 95% of the cost of the mobile facility. The AFG program primary goal is to provide financial assistance directly to fire departments and EMS organizations to enhance local capabilities for firefighter and emergency response.
This mobile training facility will feature a burn room, forcible entry practice, roof prop, standpipe set up and much more. Insurance Services Office (ISO) Fire Department Rating requires a number of annual hours in a multi-level fire training facility. This grant will allow us to meet those goal hours. The issue in the past, and reason for requesting this grant, was getting our personnel to Madison College burn facility for training because we deplete the personnel available here to run calls.
The MHAJFD would like to thank FEMA, the AFG Program, and all those involved in supporting this program and securing the funding.
Chief of Department Craig Brinkmann released a summary report for the last five years.
"This is just a glimpse of the effort and growth that has been put forth by our membership over the last five years. We should all be proud of our accomplishments." - C. Brinkmann
Click below to view the report.
On December 15, 2016 the MHAJFD Board of Directors met and approved the new Fire and EMS station as part of a public safety building shared with the Village of Mount Horeb Police Department. A resolution was signed to authorize the project.
The municipalities of the Joint Fire Department (Villages of Mount Horeb and Blue Mounds, Towns of Cross Plains, Vermont, Springdale, Blue Mounds, Primrose and Perry) held referendums on November 8, 2016 to obtain information from the residents with respect to whether they want the municipality to participate in the fire station project. With approval of 7 of the 8 municipalities, (Primrose voted Nay) the project passed.
Call volume for the MHAJFD has more than doubled since 1991 when the Department moved into the current station. The current facility was constructed as a lumber yard in 1963, and the Department has outgrown the space and the building is in need of structural repair. The Department will save significant money in jointly constructing a Public Safety Building with the Police Department.
The preliminary cost estimate of the MHAJFD portion of the project is $8,415,000. The Departments will begin work with Bray Architects to start on design of the project.
Conceptual Site Plan of Mount Horeb Public Safety Building
Bray Architects has recently completed a review of space programming for a new Public Safety Building which would house the Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department and the Village of Mount Horeb Police Department. The process used by Bray looked at a list of necessities for the new building project, checking all areas of cost, and defining areas that can be shared by the two departments. The final step of the process was to assign a total project cost and individual costs for each department. These project costs will be used in referendums that will be held in November to gauge support of the project.
Our share of the proposed project cost, with a goal to meet the needs of Fire and Emergency Medical Services now and for 50 years, is $8.4 million. This cost takes into account a late 2017/early 2018 construction start time. There are significant cost savings to the project by combining Fire and Emergency Medical Services with the Mount Horeb Police Department.
There will be many opportunities to answer questions about the process through open houses, website updates, newspaper articles and Q&A sessions with the Fire Department. The target for most of these events will be September and October.
Plans for construction are underway for a new Public Safety Building to serve the Villages of Mount Horeb and Blue Mounds, and whole or parts of the Towns of Blue Mounds, Cross Plains, Perry, Primrose, Springdale, and Vermont. The building is planned to house both fire and emergency medical services (EMS) as well as the Mount Horeb Police Department. The Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department began studying the needs at the fire and EMS department as far back as 2007 when an advisory committee was formed to address the growing need to either upgrade the current fire station or replace it.
Feasibility and Space Needs Studies completed in 2013 and 2015 concluded the fiscally responsible choice was to begin a new station design process. Aside from the biggest issue, that both the fire and police stations simply do not have enough square footage, the studies found multiple other areas of need including inefficient electrical and mechanical systems, non-ADA compliance, inadequate bathrooms and lack of work space for employees.
In May 2016, a committee comprised of members of the Mount Horeb Area Joint Fire Department, the Mount Horeb Police Department, and the Mount Horeb Village Hall hired Bray Architects, through an open RFP and interview process, to lead the way toward a proper solution for all involved.
A meeting for clerks from each village or township occurred in early June to provide information of the current progress. Each municipality is also being visited by a Fire Department representative during a board meeting to answer questions to ensure that everyone has correct information and ample opportunity to ask questions. Each of the eight municipalities will decide their own approval process; the Village of Mount Horeb has committed to support the project by adding a referendum question on the November 2016 ballot.
The project timeline, if approved this fall would include bidding the project in 2017, beginning construction in 2018 with completion in the spring of 2019. Bray is currently updating space programming, creating a schematic design and assigning construction costs. A list of necessities has been created and will be considered in the design, with a goal of a building to suit both departments’ needs for 40-50 years.
As the process continues, opportunities to answer questions will be available through a series of open house, website updates, newspapers articles and Q&A sessions with the fire department.
