Ahmedabad: The city’s fire and rescue services attended to a total of 2,697 calls during 2025-26, which is roughly seven a day or one every 3.5 hours. Data from the Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES) also shows that calls during this period were 5% lower than the 2,835 recorded in 2024-25. The data, shared on the occasion of National Fire Service Day, also shows that calls related to both fire and non-fire incidents increased by about 11% from 3,606 in 2024-25 to 3,868 in 2025-26.National Fire Service Day is observed annually in India on April 14 to commemorate the firemen who laid down their lives during a major firefighting operation at Bombay Docks in 1944. AFES officials and personnel also paid homage to colleagues who lost their lives in the past year in the line of duty. AFES chief fire officer (CFO) Amit Dongre said that the city currently has 21 fire stations to cover a 505 sq km area, out of which 19 are functional. Soon, four new fire stations will be added to address the increase in areas covered. “The older fire stations are being renovated and replaced in a phase-wise manner. Currently, the Odhav fire station is under renovation. Others will be covered soon. The services currently have 618 officers and personnel,” he said on Tuesday. AFES officials termed rescue and site management after the AI 171 crash as one of the highlights of the past year along with several major fire and rescue calls handled. A team is also deployed along the Sabarmati Riverfront to prevent suicides and save people from drowing, said officials. In 2025-26, AFES received 119 rescue calls from the river and 33 lives were saved.
