Career duty officers are full-time employees of the fire district who work 24-hour shifts staffing three of the District’s fire stations. Each shift is supervised by a shift commander (normally with the rank of Battalion Chief).

Many of the duty officers also have supervisory duties and tertiary responsibilities, such as coordinating training for the District, performing fire inspections, delivering fire prevention and education programs to the public, and performing maintenance on fire trucks, buildings, and other equipment owned by the District.

Part-time firefighters are the primary source of manpower for the Shawnee Heights Fire District and are vital to the protection of our citizens. They respond to fires, rescue calls, emergency medical responses, and other types of emergency incidents. Part-time firefighters are expected to perform the same duties as a career firefighter, including strenuous activity while combating and extinguishing fires in harsh environmental conditions. Part-time firefighters are alerted about emergencies through pagers and portable radios and respond directly to emergency scenes in their personal vehicles.

After successful completion of probation and at least two years of service at the Shawnee Heights Fire District, part-time firefighters can elect to train to become relief duty officers. Relief duty officers are qualified to work shifts at the fire station when career duty officers are on vacation, special duty or sick leave.