Lewis County Fire District #1 is headquartered in Onalaska (Lewis County), Washington, and has been serving the Onalaska, WA area since the early 1920s. We serve 3,636 people, encompassing 82 square miles of service area. Within our boundaries, we have three schools: elementary, middle, and high school. Lewis County Fire District #1 currently has 5 career personnel and 17 Volunteer firefighters/first responders/EMTs. These Volunteers handle the District’s average of 480 calls a year, responding from home, job, or sleep to meet the needs of our community. The District hosts: CPR Classes, Blood Drives, Fire Prevention Week in conjunction with the local grade school, live Safety demonstrations at the local Apple Harvest Festival, and participates in Career Day at the local High School. Lewis County Fire District #1 is an all-hazards Department providing structural fire protection, Wildland fire protection, Rescue, and Emergency Medical Services. For the past several years, District #1 has maintained a push to have our Volunteers be some of the best trained in Lewis County as well as attempting to upgrade our equipment to meet acceptable standards.
Our History
Onalaska was a booming mill town until the depression, when production came on hard times. In June of 1942, the mill closed down permanently, causing business and residents to leave the area. Since that time, Onalaska has remained a quiet residential bedroom community. The earliest documentation of the Onalaska Fire Department was by Ernie Grandchamp, who was the Chief from 1928 until the closing of the mill. In a Lewis County Board of Commissioners meeting on Dec 2, 1945, it was voted that Lewis county Fire District 1 should be organized.
The original fire house from that era was moved to Carlisle Ave (where Napa currently is). A new fire Station was built at 1733 SR 508 in 2020. This station allows the District to grow and house employees, volunteers, and community events.
