Costa Mesa Fire and Rescure Firefighter Corey Brean took and passed his final probationary tests this past week.

The tests include a written test and a map test where they demonstrate that they know the major streets, the hundred blocks, and target hazards in the city.

He also took a manipulative test where he demonstrated comprehensive knowledge of the city’s firefighting operations such as, hose deployment, ladder placement, rescue systems, auto extrication, and ventilation techniques.

Firefighter Brean performed exceptionally well and will finish probation in June.

Costa Mesa Fire and Rescue Chief Dan Stefano announced that Travis Johnson and Justin Horner, two firefighter/paramedics, were both promoted to the position of fire engineer, a personnel move that has not taken place in the department in over eight years.

“Travis and Justin represent the best of our organization and each has respectively contributed in a variety of areas, while serving the community with extraordinary passion, pride, and professionalism,”   Chief Stefano said.

Johnson brings over 10 years of fire service related experience to his new role, inclusive of his most recent nine years split between his current assignment here with us at the City of Costa Mesa and his previous assignment with the City of Escondido, serving as a firefighter/paramedic.

His mechanical savvy, positive attitude, and ability to adapt well in challenging circumstances are characteristics that will serve him well in his new role and will add to the extraordinary strength of the entire Engineer group.

Horner has been a member of the Costa Mesa team since 2005, preceded by service to the Garden Grove and Alhambra Fire Departments as a firefighter/paramedic.

Horner’s contributions to the organization, in particular as it relates to EMS, have been instrumental in helping the department move forward and his professionalism is to be commended. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from California State University, Fullerton as well as an associate degree from Orange Coast College and was awarded the CEO’s Leadership Award in 2014.

The Costa Mesa Fire and Rescue Department would like to remind residents that May 1 through May 7 is National Arson Awareness Week.

Each year for National Arson Awareness Week, the U.S. Fire Administration gathers and shares information to raise awareness of arson or youth fire setting and provide individuals with strategies to combat these problems in their community.

According to the U.S. Fire Administration, nationwide in 2013 there were 1,240,000 fires, resulting in 3,240 deaths, 15,925 injuries and $11.5 billion in property loss.

More than half a million wildfires are set by arsonists each year in the U.S., resulting in over $3 billion in damages, according to the fire administration.

This year’s National Arson Awareness Week theme is “Prevent Wildfire Arson – Spread the Facts Not the Fire.”

Click here for more information on how the public can protect itself and guard against wildfire arson.

After a string of dumpster and small brush fires throughout the weekend, Costa Mesa Fire and Police personnel conducted an arson investigation that led them to a 13-year old male Costa Mesa resident.

The boy was arrested for the related arson incidents and later booked at OC Juvenile Hall.

Click here to read the press release of the arrest.

Progress continues in the preparation of the construction documents for the reconstruction of Fire Station No. 1.  The station was originally built in 1961 and is currently experiencing foundation settlement causing structural damage. The station is not built to current building codes and standards, and does not provide efficient multi-gender accommodations.

The Public Services Department in coordination with the Fire Department is working with WLC Architects to complete the construction documents for a state of the art Fire Station.

The new station will be equipped with a three-bay and double-deep apparatus room, ten fire fighter dorm rooms, administrative offices, kitchen, dining room, day room, physical training room, EMS training room, mechanic shop area, and emergency medical supply room within the 11,675 square foot building.  Additional site features include an emergency generator, fuel station, hose drying tower, and a City emergency supply storage unit.

The new station will provide direct access to Adams Avenue in an effort to minimize emergency response time and improve traffic safety. The floor plan is being designed and coordinated to ensure that usability and circulation are maximized.

The new station will achieve LEED Gold certification and exceed California Title 24 Energy Code requirements by at least 15%. The attached architectural concept was approved by the Planning Commission in January. It is anticipated that bidding on the project will begin in the summer of 2017 with award of the contract by the council in October of 2016. Construction is anticipated to begin in January 2017.

On April 13, 2016, the Engine 81 team of Capt. Taylor Voss, Engineer Cinnamon Basco and Firefighter/Paramedic Jeff Bibler responded to Southbound Harbor north of the San Diego Freeway to investigate a report that several ducklings had fallen into a storm drain.

See video of the rescue below:

When the crew from Engine 81 arrived they used a pry bar to gain access to the storm drain and were able to rescue nine ducklings.

Initially, one of the ducklings was resistant to being rescued; however, the firefighters were persistent and successful in rescuing all the ducklings.

We are happy to report that all ducklings were released and reunited with Mama Duck.

After the rescue, the crew was said to be quacking up as they reflected on the day’s events.

The 20-plus members of Costa Mesa’s Telecommunications Bureau received some special recognition this week as city, police and fire officials celebrated the National Public Safety Communicators Week that runs through April 16.

The week, sponsored by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International and celebrated annually, honors the thousands of men and women who respond to emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the world’s citizens, according to a statement on the association’s website.

City CEO office staff, including CEO Tom Hatch, was one of several departments to provide food, deserts and beverages to the team as a way to honor and thank them for the work they do.

On Wednesday April 13, Hatch and others visited the bureau, located just behind City Hall, and met with members of the telecom team and got a demonstration of their duties.

“They provide quality customer service to residents by continually and quickly helping to solve problems for the community,” Hatch said.

CEO Tom Hatch and telecom Supervisor Sandra Marquez

The communications officers who work in the bureau take in more than 100 calls a day and put in 12 and sometimes 18-hour shifts taking calls from accident victims, suicidal, belligerent and despondent callers or victims of fire or crime.

“How often do you have to take a call from someone who is having perhaps the worst experience in their life,” said Costa Mesa Police Lt. Keith Davis, who supervises the Telecommunications Bureau. “They do it every single day.”

Davis noted the bureau is only one of two in the county that manages all dispatch duties for a single city.  The telecom team handles both emergency and non-emergency calls for police, fire, animal control maintenance and water services. They provide members of the public with directions on how to respond to medical emergencies.

Davis, who has supervised the crew for a little more than a year, said he’s learned a lot about just what they do.

“I think they are extremely deserving of the recognition,” he said. “This is an opportunity to tell them that we do appreciate them and there are a lot of people dropping by and recognizing them. It makes them feel they are not unnoticed. They are real excited.”

Davis pointed out that the dispatchers and call takers end up being spokespeople for the city. How a member of the public is treated can really change perceptions.

“It helps to have talented people,” he said. “I thought I knew a little bit about dispatch. I had no idea about the scope of their responsibilities. Doing what they do on a daily basis, especially being short staffed, is even more admirable.”

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Believe it or not, Southern California is on the verge of beginning the fire season.

In preparation for that, Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue has started the first phase of wildland firefighting training.

Fire crews traveled to Gypsum Canyon to train with other Orange County agencies to prepare for what is expected to be a busy season.

In addition to preparing for potential brush fires, members of the Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue have been training diligently to prepare probationary firefighters for their manipulative testing.

Although, the focus is to train probationary firefighters,  seasoned firefighters benefit from the training as they coach our new generation of firefighters.

The battalion chiefs have been conducting evaluated drills for every crew assigned to their shift.

This training exercises communications, tactical decisions and crew continuity.

Fire and Rescue teams responded to two working fires this week.  The first took place in an unincorporated area of Costa Mesa on Willo Lane where units from Costa Mesa, Newport Beach and Orange County Fire.

Several animals were able to escape or be rescued while the damage to the house left four people without shelter.  Red Cross was offered and will assist with lodging if needed.

The second fire occurred in Talbert Park South and burned a large amount of vegetation. The cause of the fires is under investigation. Orange County Fire Authority, Huntington Beach Fire Department and Anaheim Police Department assisted with gaining control of the brush fire.

Access to the fire was hampered by mud due the recent rains and thick brush slowed down the suppression efforts.  HBFD and OCFA provided helicopters with water dropping capabilities to gain control until ground resources could make access.

Battalion Chief Kevin Diamond was recognized recently as the Fire Terrorism Liaison Officer of the Year for Orange County at an annual meeting of the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Center.

The assessment center is responsible for assisting in keeping our Orange County community safe from terrorist attacks. The web page can be found here.

Chief Diamond was instrumental in getting every member of the Costa Mesa Fire and Rescue certified as a Terrorism Liaison Officer.

These officers are trained to recognize possible indicators of terrorist activity, and then report such findings to assessment center.

Chief Diamond has been the coordinating officer for Costa Mesa Fire and Rescue and the assessment center.

The Fire and Rescue Department held a special swearing-in ceremony on Friday Oct. 30 at the City Council Chambers to honor both the promotion of three new fire captains and a division chief as well as the memory of those who perished in the Sept.11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Steve Airey, Fred McDowell and Taylor Voss received their badges at the event. Airey and McDowell are newly promoted captains and Voss was promoted last August. In addition, recently promoted Division Chief Jason Pyle also received his badge.

“With this promotion, we are moving three veteran firefighters with decades of experience to the helm of our company office cadre,” Fire and Rescue Chief Dan Stefano said. “I look forward to their contributions to the fire service and the Costa Mesa community for years to come.”

Airey began his career with the Costa Mesa Fire Department in September, 2003 and as a firefighter/paramedic. In 2013, he managed a project to activate the department’s first Paramedic Assessment Unit and he’s spent 16 years as a seasonal beach lifeguard with the City of Coronado. He’s a graduate of the Santa Ana College Fire Academy and he has a Bachelor’s Degree in kinesiology from San Diego State University.

A longtime musician, McDowell joined the Costa Mesa Fire Department Honor Guard as a volunteer bugler in 1995 and was later hired as a firefighter in 1998 and promoted to fire engineer in 2002. He is a graduate of the Santa Ana College Fire Academy. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in education and music from Cal State University Fullerton, and he has continued his volunteer role with the Honor Guard for 20 years.

Voss is a third-generation firefighter who joined the Costa Mesa Fire Department in 2003. He has been the department’s EMS Committee Chair and has been a key member on the Rescue Ambulance Committee, among many other departmental contributions. Further, Taylor brings over three years of experience, training, and leadership from his respected military service as a member of the United States Navy. He is a graduate of the Santa Ana College Basic Fire Academy and is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree from Kaplan University.

In addition to the captain and division chief promotions, the fire department announced that Daniel Cooper and Clint Brown have officially begun their employment with the Fire Department as paramedics. The pair will first complete the Orange County Paramedic accreditation process and then begin an intensive, two-week orientation academy before being placed into their respective shift assignments.

Cooper is a graduate of El Camino College’s Basic Fire Academy and the Paramedic Training Institute. He has recent experience working as a firefighter/paramedic for the Sierra Madre Fire Department, in addition to experience working as a reserve firefighter for the Culver City Fire Department and as an ambulance operator for the Long Beach and Hermosa Beach Fire Departments. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from California State University, Los Angeles.

Brown is a graduate of San Pasqual’s Basic Fire Academy and the National College of Technical Instruction’s Paramedic Program. Most recently, he worked as a paramedic in Riverside County, as an EMT with Care Ambulance, and previously served as a reserve firefighter for the Fountain Valley Fire Department.

Coinciding with the swearing in ceremony was a display of the 9-11 Rescue Remembrance Project at City Hall. The firetruck was one of several Rescue units that were called into service when terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. Every member of that rescue firetruck team perished in the World Trade Center attacks. The Rescue truck has been visiting Southern California fire agencies throughout the summer and will leave Costa Mesa Friday as it goes on tour throughout the nation.

Costa Mesa Fire Chief Dan Stefano announced that Fire Capt. Jason Pyle has been promoted to fire division chief, giving him oversight over the department operations and placing him into a vital role with the Command Staff.

“This promotion comes at a very important time for our organization,” Chief Stefano said. “I look forward to the contributions and support Jason will bring in his new role to lead and carry out the duties and responsibilities that define his new position.”

Pyle has held department leadership positions in community relations, California Incident Command Certification System administration, records management, negotiations, mapping and training program management.

He is grateful for the opportunity this new role will provide.

“It is a great honor to have been chosen for this new leadership role,” Pyle said. “I have so much admiration for the team that we have assembled here in Costa Mesa, and I vow to work together with them to ensure our department remains at the forefront of fire and rescue operations.”

Pyle is a 19-year veteran of the fire service, beginning his career as a reserve with the Anaheim Fire Department in 1997. After holding roles with Los Alamitos, Menlo Park and Fullerton fire agencies, he joined the Costa Mesa fire service in 2003.

Pyle has a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from UC Irvine and an associate degree from Santa Ana College. He is also a Certified Battalion Chief and currently serves as the Orange County associate director for the California Fire Chiefs Training Officers Section. He holds several other distinctions and honors.

Pyle will begin his new role on Monday Oct. 19 and he will be based out of the Fire Department Administration offices on the fifth floor of City Hall. His official swearing in ceremony will take place on Friday Oct. 30 in City Council Chambers.