All fire departments have as part of their mission the protection of life and property. This is accomplished by providing emergency services to the public. However, many factors affect the degree to which a particular fire department is able to provide all of the services required by a community. Many times, help from other agencies is necessary because the size of an incident has overwhelmed the department's resources, or multiple incidents occur for which the department is unprepared. To address these potential problems, neighboring communities often enter into 'mutual aid' agreements.
Mutual aid is a reciprocal agreement between two or more fire protection agencies.
Typically, calls for aid involve several agencies providing help in the form of staffing or equipment. The agreements authorizing this aid detail such things as liability, reimbursement for costs, command structure at the scene, etc. In Iowa, Chapter 28E of the Code of Iowa sets out parameters for this sharing of services between agencies. Representatives meet monthly to discuss issues, share information and train. The Association is continually searching for new and better ways to coordinate their efforts, and provide safer and more manageable emergency operations.