Ephrata Fire Department, Station 1-5, is located at 135 South State Street, across the street from the Ephrata Police Department and Ephrata Borough offices. Station 1-5 was constructed in 1972 and continues to serve the community. Members of the building committee in 1972 showed great forethought in their building plans for the station. As we continue through the years, the fire station continues to have ample space and an extremely functional layout for our endeavors.
Water Rescue
 Beginning in 2006, Ephrata Fire Department began heavily training in water rescue techniques. Beginning in November, we undertook the Pa Fish & Boat Commission's entire water rescue training series. Also in November, we qualified for the Pennsylvania Water Rescue Instructor's Association (PWRIA) Level I Accreditation.
During this time period, our water rescue team grew and began to incorporate seasoned members with previous water rescue experience. We continued through the curriculum of water rescue courses, as well as monthly, at minimum, company level trainings.
Beginning in 2007, we incorporated water rescue into our regular Tuesday evening trainings. Just as the first Tuesday of the month became dedicated to truck company operations, the second Tuesday of the month became dedicated to water rescue training. This brought our water rescue trainings, to at minimum, two trainings per month. Luckily, the cold water arrived just in time, and long enough, in February for us to complete our Ice Rescue class.
 In July of 2007, we began to see all the training pay off as we completed our second to last course in the series and met the PWRIA's qualifications for Level II Accreditation. To date, there are only fourteen other agencies in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania meeting these qualifications. As of November 2007, we have logged 630+ hours in water rescue training this year alone. We, as a department have now completed Water Rescue Awareness, Water Rescue & Emergency Response, Pa Basic Boating, Ice Rescue, and Emergency Boat Operations.
We wish to extend our sincere thanks to all who helped us on this continuing journey; from other department's sharing their ideas, experiences, and thoughts to local business persons helping us lay out our Special Operations Trailer. We wish to especially thank our instructor, consultant, and friend; Todd Stahl from Whitecap Rescue.
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