The history of the Agency starts with the establishment of the Fire and Disaster Management Headquarters inside the Police Bureau of the Ministry of Interior in 1880. In that period, fire and disaster management organized inside a "Public System for Fire Disaster and Management" was just a part of the police organization. It gained independence in 1948, when the Fire and Disaster Management Agency was established inside the National Public Safety Commission. Its name was changed to the National Fire and Disaster Management Headquarters in 1952.

The Fire and Disaster Management Agency took its present form in 1960 when it was established as an external bureau of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Since then, the Agency has provided support for fire and disaster management agencies in municipalities nationwide that are directly engaged in fire and disaster management activities and building a system for comprehensive fire and disaster management, and disaster prevention on a national level.

The Agency became an external bureau of the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications, following the reorganization of central government ministries and agencies in January 2001.