The Naugatuck Fire Department began as a private fire department in 1883 under the India Rubber Glove Company, which later went on to become U.S. Rubber and then Uniroyal. In 1888 the company transferred the fire department to the town, offering volunteer firefighter services that serviced town residents until 1916, when the first full-time employee was hired.
Over time, the department hired more professional firefighters while accompanying a volunteer firefighter squad as well. Then, in 2004, the volunteer service dissolved, leaving the paid firefighters as the sole company at the Naugatuck Fire Department.
The Borough of Naugatuck Fire Department responds to fires, motor vehicle accidents, chemical and oil spills, rescue calls and weather-related emergencies.
Borough firefighters attend training both in-service and at the Connecticut Fire Academy, and are trained in a variety of skills in addition to fire fighting. Some of these skills include confined space rescue, rope rescue, hazardous materials and emergency medical, the town website states.
The fire department, a two-floor building situated across from the Naugatuck Town Hall, is also the main office for the fire marshal. The fire marshal enforces the state's fire safety codes and conducts reviews of incidents to determine causes. The building has two bays in front, and one on the side, and the department has five engines, one ladder truck, one rescue truck and a brush truck.
The Naugatuck Fire Department also operates a satellite station called the Eastside Firehouse, located at the intersection of May and Osborne streets on one of the hills overlooking the borough.
The current head of the department is Fire Chief Ken Hanks.