Our Patch

Our Unit serves the whole of greater Auckland, known administratively within Fire and Emergency New Zealand as the southern part of Region 1.

We are a regional resource assisting as required across the southern part of the Region, and on rare occasions we may also travel to help in the North and in neighbouring Regions.

Prior to recent changes, our Auckland Region was, by far, the smallest of New Zealand's 6 Fire Regions ... in area, that is. But as we all know, size wasn't everything - we had other things going for us that made our Region unique within New Zealand's fire services. In August 2011 Northland was added to the Region. Nevertheless we in the southern part of Region 1 have our features:

• It spreads from Wellsford in the North to Mercer in the South, coast-to-coast. (Our area of operations)
• Has within it 26 paid/composite stations and 39 volunteer stations. (Operational Support don't have their own station. Sniff!)
• Has a mix of paid staff (500) and volunteers (860)
• Protects a mix of sprawling urban areas (500 square kms) and a large rural hinterland (4,000 square kms). (We criss-cross 4,500 square kms attending various emergencies)
• Protects property with a Government Valuation of $474 billion (Garden sheds to high-rise office blocks)
• Has within it New Zealand's busiest commercial airport, Auckland International at Mangere, with more than 175,000 aircraft movements each year; that's an average 470 each day. (Served by 30 international airlines)
• Includes the Port of Auckland, the centre of container ship operations and naval base. (Real ships and a stone frigate)
• Protects islands in the Hauraki Gulf including the burgeoning island dormitory "suburb", Waiheke, which has its own Brigade with 2 stations. (Back-up by boat or helicopter)
• Its population of 1.7 million grows faster than 37,000 annually (Some of our members are helping this statistic)*
• Has a cosmopolitan population of more than 200 ethnic groups: for many English is their second language*. (Sometimes makes communication difficult in the heat of the moment)
• 11,000 vehicles more vehicles went on to Auckland's roads for the year ending July 2017* (It was just half this figure in 2013!)
• Is the Region with most Brigade responses
• Has the busiest Fire Station in New Zealand ... Auckland City Station
• It's often said that those from outside our growing, and often traffic-clogged, metropolis don't understand Auckland. The fact is that whatever it is, it's probably going to happen here first, and then more often. (We have ignored calls from out-of-towners over the decades for restraint and taunts of ridicule that we are "over the top". The Unit thrives in an atmosphere of solid support from local Fire and Emergency Executives, particularly in recent years, with the Unit providing a "uniquely Auckland" niche service to assist the greater Fire Service community, other emergency services, our fellow citizens and visitors.