The Kings Mountain Volunteer Fire Department (KMFD), San Mateo County Company 56 (Co56), provides emergency response services to the local community along the mountainous Skyline corridor in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County.
The KMFD responds to the majority of public safety emergencies in this area and is staffed by approximately ten volunteer firefighters, including one Assistant Chief and one Chief. As an all-risk fire department, KMFD volunteers are trained to provide the same range of emergency services as paid fire departments within the county. These services include medical emergencies, vehicle collisions, structure and wildland fires, vehicle fires, rope rescues, downed trees and power lines, public assists, and hazardous materials incidents. In addition to serving the local community, KMFD responds to mutual aid requests throughout San Mateo County.
Today, KMFD remains an important part of public safety in the Kings Mountain area. In addition to local emergency responses, the KMFD assists during major wildfire incidents and regional emergencies, including participation in large-scale responses such as the CZU Lightning Complex fires.
Vehicles
The KMFD’s apparatus/vehicles are purchased and owned by the Kings Mountain Volunteer Fire Brigade (KMVFB), with substantial funding from the Kings Mountain Art Fair and San Mateo County Measure K funding, which consists of four specialized vehicles:
Rescue 56 (R56)
2024 Braun Northwest (Ford F-350 4×4) North Star 116” Module Walk-In, Light Rescue Vehicle
Engine 56 (E56)
2019 Spartan Metro Star MFD Hi-Tech (Spartan) Type 1 Structure Engine, 500 gallon tank, 1,500 gpm pump
Engine 356 (E356)
2003 Freightliner FL 80 4×4 Hi-Tech Type 3 Wildland Engine, 500 gallon tank, 500 gpm pump
Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV56)
2023 Bombardier Defender HD10 Off-Road All-Terrain Vehicle
Water Tender 56 (WT56)
In addition, the KMFD staffs a San Mateo County, 2016 Kenworth T370 Spartan ER 2,300 gallon tank with 750 gpm pump vehicle, which provides responses in the Kings Mountain and mutual aid in areas with limited fire water supply, further enhancing the department’s emergency water supply, fire suppression and response capabilities.
History
Early Origins & Formation
The Kings Mountain Fire Department (KMFD) began as a community-based volunteer fire service in response to the remote, rugged location of Kings Mountain along Skyline Boulevard in San Mateo County CA and the need for local emergency response. The department was established in 1962, when local residents formally organized to provide fire and emergency services for the Kings Mountain area. This effort was supported by the formation of the Kings Mountain Volunteer Fire Brigade (KMVFB), which continues to oversee and support the KMFD.
Firehouse & Community Center
A key milestone was the creation of the Kings Mountain Firehouse and Community Center. Land for the facility was donated by the Phleger family in the early 1960s. Community volunteers helped construct and expand the building, which has since served both as a fire station and as a central gathering place for Kings Mountain residents.
Volunteer Service & Operations
The KMFD operates primarily as a volunteer fire department supported by the Kings Mountain Volunteer Fire Brigade, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formed in 1962. Volunteers include trained firefighters and emergency medical responders drawn from the local community. The department responds to wildland fires, structure fires, medical emergencies, rescues, and vehicle incidents.
Response Area & Equipment
The department serves portions of Skyline Boulevard and surrounding rural areas between Highway 92 and Woodside Road. Due to the heavily forested and fire-prone environment, the KMFD has historically emphasized wildland firefighting capability. Apparatus and equipment have been funded largely through community fundraising, mainly through the long-running Kings Mountain Art Fair, along with support from San Mateo County funding.
Integration with County Fire Services
The KMFD operates within the broader San Mateo County fire protection system. Over time, San Mateo County has partnered with CalFire to provide staffing, training, and enhanced emergency response capabilities for stations serving the Kings Mountain area, including the nearby Skylonda Fire Station.
KMFD Formation Description by Local Residents
“William Lieb was a crusty farmer who owned the land on the right side of Star Hill Road” recalls Jim Wickett. “Lieb liked his routines. One of them was burning in January. Most years that makes sense, but not in tinder-dry 1964”. The fire got away from Lieb and the wind started it up the canyon. “There was an old turn of the century sawmill down there on our property and it went up soon after the brush fire got going. It wasn’t clear if it was a structure fire or a brush/forest fire.”
The California Department of Forestry (CDF, now Cal Fire) was called. “That was when we learned that the county would fight a forest fire but NOT a structure fire and we almost lost the whole mountain” recalls Ardy (longtime local resident). “It looked like a wall of fire coming up that canyon” says Jim Wickett. Bob McEwen, who was part of the KMFD, recalls helping to fight the fire with a garden hose. John Wickett had a lot of bulldozers and for the next four days they used them to cut fire breaks. The state sent equipment too. “We stopped it at the top of the mountain” recalls Jim. By that point over 1600 acres had burned. Local historian Ken Fisher says the fire energized the fledgling San Mateo County Historical Society. They decided to document the logging history of San Mateo County. The book Sawmills in the Redwoods appeared a couple of years later.
Ardy continues: “While the CDF provided some protection, during the height of fire season they send their equipment wherever it is needed in the state to fight forest fires, leaving Kings Mountain unprotected. And with the twisting road system, if the equipment isn’t already on the mountain, it may be too late. Jean Cole started to see the Art Fair as a business that could help support the community. I was still thinking of it as music and art and fun in the forest.”
“Fire equipment was parked in yards all over the mountain. Jean knew an efficient fire department needed a building. Jean’s husband John Cole, who was an architect, thought we could also have a community center. John designed it so it melded into the forest. We begged and borrowed the materials and worked for 5 years building it with all volunteer labor” says Ardy. “Dapper John Cole was always there, directing a crew of people with no building skills.” At the building dedication the Phlegers gave us the property and so it was originally called Phleger station.