New State Fire Engines Assigned to Southern California Fire Departments

Monday, June 9, 2008

New State Fire Engines Assigned to Southern California Fire Departments

Governor Schwarzenegger Unveils New State Fire Engines Assigned to Southern California Fire Departments

Gov. Schwarzenegger joined representatives from the Office of Emergency Services (OES), local elected officials, firefighters and Blue Ribbon Fire Commission members to unveil five new engines from the OES Engine Program.

Press release from Governors office: 06/05/2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Arnold Schwarzenegger joined representatives from the Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES), local elected officials, firefighters and Blue Ribbon Commission Task Force members to unveil five new engines from the OES Engine Program that have been assigned to the San Diego, Escondido, Oceanside, Murrieta and Riverside Fire Departments.

"These engines are vital to our mission of ensuring that California is ready for any natural or man-made disaster," Governor Schwarzenegger said. "They will boost our ability to respond to emergencies and help put out fires while they are still small. They can also be deployed quickly to the front lines of an emergency because they are being kept in our most vulnerable communities and in the hands of local personnel."

The new engines, costing $250,000 each, feature modern radios, an automatic transmission and other features that meet National Fire Protection Association standards. The vehicles, which qualify as Type 3 Light Urban Search and Rescue apparatus (USRA), are equipped with a shorter wheel base, allowing them to be used in wildland-urban interface fires as well as earthquakes and other emergencies.

These five new engines are just the beginning. Another five engines are set to be deployed throughout Los Angeles County this month, plus five more this summer in Northern California. This is part of the 19 engines that the Governor funded in his 2005-06 budget following recommendations from the Blue Ribbon Fire Commission after the 2003 Southern California wildfires. Fifteen of the 19 engines are Type 3 USRAs and four are standard fire trucks.

The distribution of fire engines was determined strategically through a comprehensive review process by committees of Operational Area Coordinators, OES Fire and Rescue Region Coordinators and OES Fire and Rescue Branch Representatives who have assessed regional needs and mutual aid capabilities.

In his 2008-09 May Budget revise, the Governor fully funds CAL FIRE and is working to implement the Emergency Response Initiative. The Governor believes we must do everything we can to maximize our disaster readiness. The Emergency Response Initiative is expected to generate nearly $70 million for emergency response next year, and the initiative will help the state fund additional fire engines to eventually reach the 150 fire engine goal recommended by the Governor's Blue Ribbon Commission.

Highlights of the Emergency Response Initiative include:

Funding full peak-season staffing of 336 fire engines with 1,100 seasonal firefighters in 2008-09.
Purchasing 26 fire engines as part of the first year of a five-year cycle to acquire and maintain a total of 131 additional Office of Emergency Services fire engines on loan to local firefighters, increasing the total available from 119 to 250 over five years.
Funding aerial assets, including 11 new all-weather, 24-hour-capable helicopters that will be purchased.
Providing the National Guard with two full-time helicopter crews; two firefighting systems for the C-130 cargo aircraft, and three helicopter firefighting systems.

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Monday, June 9, 2008