The Tasmania Fire Service (TFS), the operational arm of the State Fire Commission, was created in 1979 through the amalgamation of the State Fire Authority, the Rural Fires Board and 22 urban fire brigade boards. The TFS includes over 230 fire brigades across Tasmania and its islands. These fire brigades are comprised of around 250 career firefighters and approximately 4800 volunteer firefighters. The TFS today is a dynamic and diverse organisation undertaking; • emergency response, • emergency call handling and dispatch, • fire investigation, • training, • community fire education, • building safety, • fire equipment sales and service, • building and maintaining TFS vehicles, • maintaining a State-wide communications network, and • fire alarm monitoring.