Public Education

Public Education

The Ankeny Fire Department strives to reduce fires and prevent injuries through education.

Fire Prevention Week

Fire Prevention Week is Oct. 4-10, 2026.  The Ankeny Fire Department Open Houses feature various activities for all ages, focusing on fire safety and prevention, including fall and safety prevention.

Community Open Houses

This year AFD will be hosting two Open Houses during Fire Prevention Week at Ankeny Fire Station No. 1, 120 Ash Drive from 6-8 pm.

  • Fire Prevention Week Special Needs Open House is Tuesday Oct. 6, 2026
  • Fire Prevention Week Open House is Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026

Our Special Needs Open House is specifically tailored to individuals with autism, special needs or disabilities and their families with modified activities.

The Open House on Wednesday offers tours of the Fire Station Headquarters, meeting our firefighters, and a variety of fun safety activities.

Tours of our Ankeny Fire Department are available to all City of Ankeny residents.  Tours are located at the Fire Station Headquarters and Museum, 120 NW Ash Drive and need to be scheduled ahead of time and are offered during office hours Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Building Tour Guidelines:

  • Tour requests should be made at least a week in advance
  • All guests should be at least 4 years old
  • Ankeny resident or group based in Ankeny
  • Preferably 20 or less participants, exceptions can be made for larger groups
  • Limit one tour per group, per year
  • No weapons
  • No strollers or wagons
  • No food or beverage

The Fire Station is an actively working station, there may or may not be apparatus in the station.  It is important all guests are able to cooperate in the event an apparatus needs to leave quickly or is arriving back at the station.  Our museum is always open for a self-guided tour.

Preschool and Daycare center visits (effective May 2025)

During a preschool or daycare center visit, we will do a fire safety presentation and overview of the gear a firefighter wears in a fire.  These visits are focused at a preschool / 4-year-old audience. Each presentation takes approximately 30 minutes. 

Please note:

  • We are no longer doing presentations for audiences with children younger than 4 years old.
  • There is a limit of one visit per calendar year per facility.
  • We are no longer able to bring our Fire Engine to preschool or daycare center visits.

Museum

Our museum is a self-guided museum filled with artifacts and a timeline detailing the evolution of the Ankeny Fire Department from our start in 1910 to today. The Fire Station Headquarters Lobby and Museum can be accessed Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.

Ankeny Fire Department Community Involvement

There are a variety of ways the Ankeny Fire Department can partner with your business, community group, classroom, or preschool ages 4 and up during our working hours.  A program or presentation can be customized on a variety of fire prevention and life safety topics.

  • Have a firefighter visit your classroom as a guest reader
  • Have a firefighter visit your class and speak on a topic of your choice (career, fire safety, human body and injuries/illness, safety, community role, how we use reading, writing, math, science, map skills, technology, etc. daily in our jobs or field student questions) 
  • Safety coloring sheets, brochures, bookmarks and activity books are available on a variety of topics from fire safety, bicycle safety, poisoning prevention, burn prevention, school fire drills and more.  They are available free of charge while supplies last.

If you have an idea, suggestion, in need of a resource please let us know!  We are happy to assist in any way possible.

Fire Extinguisher Training

The Ankeny Fire Department offers fire extinguisher training to businesses, educational institutions, and community groups.

  • Training uses a Bullex fire extinguisher simulator
  • Training is divided into a classroom portion and an outdoor portion where participants may extinguish a live fire in a controlled manner.
  • This program can be tailored to meet your group's needs

Email to schedule a fire extinguisher training class.

Fire & Fall Prevention Programs

Email to schedule a customized fire safety and fall prevention program.