2017 Annual Report

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TABLE OF

CONTENTS

Message from the Chief Page 3 Acknowledgements Page 4 Mission and Values Page 5 History Page 6 Headquarters Page 7 Operations Page 8 Support Services Page 9 Battalion 1 Page 10 Battalion 2 Page 11 Battalion 3 Page 12 Incidents and Fires Page 13 2016 vs. 2017 Comparison Page 14 Progress Page 15 In & Out of County Page 16 Retirements & Promotions Page 17 Academies Page 18 Employee Recognition Page 19 Community Involvement Page 20 Thank You Letters Page21 2 MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF 2017 was a very busy year for the fire service in general and the Tulare County Fire Department was no exception. We had several large local incidents including several fires and a flood incident. We also assisted with several sizable out of county incidents, including the Thomas Fire and Tubbs Fire. The Tree Mortality Task Force made several presentations throughout the year to gain support for this important work. We will continue to move forward with these issues in our mountain communities. Due to the heavy rains in January and February in California, our Swift Water Rescue Team was activated earlier than usual with two successful rescues in February. In April, the combination of rising temperatures and snow melts lead to treacherous waterways. The Swift Water Rescue Team responded to 6 incidents throughout Tulare County and Sequoia National Park. The TCFD Swift Water team was able to host a media event with KMPH Channel 26 to demonstrate our training and equipment to the media in a positive man- ner. The month of May brought along the start of fire season and requests for assistance to the Elm Incident in Coalinga. TCFD sent the OES Strike Team in for a five day assignment to help out. June was an “All-hands-on-deck” month with the Dinely Fire in Three Rivers and the Kings River flooding event. In addition to these incidents, we had 3 Swift Water rescues. The month of August was a very taxing month on all Local, State and Federal fire resources. In California alone, there were several significant incidents reaching over the 10,000 acre mark including the Pier Fire (the largest Wildland fire in Tulare County’s history) which continued into the month of September and concluded with a total of 36,556 acres. At the end of September, TCFD began the move to our new Headquarters office. The move was a long time in the works with many renovations being completed to the building prior to the official move in date. TCFD’s Honor Guard also participated in the annual Cali- fornia Firefighter Memorial Ceremony at the Sacramento Capitol Park. In October, TCFD committed numerous resources to the multitude of incidents in Napa, Sonoma, Yuba, Orange and Mendocino County areas. Overall, approximately 7,000 homes were damaged or destroyed and 42 fatalities were reported. The month of November and the cooler weather significantly slowed down the incredible call volume that TCFD experienced the prior six months. However, moving into the month of December, the cooler weather had little impact on TCFD’s call volume and out of county activities. TCFD provided Overhead and Fire Suppression support to the Thomas Fire in Ventura and Santa Barbara County areas. The Thomas Fire consumed approximately 281,893 acres and is now the largest recorded fire in California history and is the seventh most destructive wildfire in California’s history. On behalf of the men and women of the Tulare County Fire Department, thank you for allowing us to serve you. Charlie Norman Fire Chief, Tulare County Fire Department 3

We would like to thank the Board of Supervisors and the County Administrative Officer for their ongoing support.

Pictured left to right: Supervisor Pete Vander Poel, Supervisor Mike Ennis, Supervisor Kuyler Crocker, Supervisor Amy Shuklian, Supervisor Steve Worthley

County Administrative Officer Michael Spata 4

MISSION STATEMENT

The Tulare County Fire Department is committed to providing leadership, coordination and customer based service through fire prevention, suppression, and emergency medical services.

CORE VALUES

INTEGRITY RESPECT LOYALTY TEAMWORK COMPASSION VISION STATEMENT

We are committed to excellence through professionalism and trustworthiness achieved through our daily operations. We will continue to expand our public service delivery model through innovative and fiscally-responsible practices. We will strive to offer our workforce the best opportunities available for training and education to further enhance the public service we provide.

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The Tulare County Fire Department is a fairly new department, as far as full-service fire departments go. The Department, as it exists today, was created and started operations on July 1, 2007. Prior to that date, Tulare County residents received fire protection services from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF) through a service contract. On December 20, 2005, the Tulare County Board of Supervisors decided to end their contract with CDF and to create a County Fire Department. The County Fire Department would be staffed by county employees and responsive to the direction set by the Board of Supervisors. In February of 2006, Steve Sunderland was hired as the Fire Chief for the new Tulare County Fire Department. Chief Sunderland hired an executive team to help him set in place the necessary elements that would allow for a smooth transition from CDF to a County Fire Department by July 1, 2007. He hired Division Chief Ted Mendoza for Operations, Division Chief John Crivello for Training and Division Chief Joe Garcia for Fire Prevention. A kick-off ceremony was held on June 29, 2007 with nationally recognized fire service leader, Ronny Coleman, being the guest speaker. July 1, 2007 marks the “birthday” of the Tulare County Fire Department. Chief Sunderland retired August 13, 2011 after five and a half years of service. On October 23, 2011, the Board of Supervisors appointed Division Chief Joe Garcia to become the Department’s second Fire Chief. Chief Garcia remained the Tulare County Fire Chief until January 9, 2016 when Charlie Norman took over the role of Tulare County Fire Chief. Chief Norman, has served as Fire Chief for over 2 years now and has continued the work of those before him in setting the Tulare County Fire Department up to be in a position of success.

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HEADQUARTERS

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OPERATIONS DIVISION

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BATTALION

Station1 Visalia ONE

Station 2 Station 3 Kings River Dinuba

Station 4

Cutler/Orosi Station 8 Ivanhoe

Station 11 Station 12 Exeter Woodlake

Station 13 Lemon Cove

Station 14 Three Rivers Station 17 Badger

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BATTALION

Station 5 Posey Station 6 TWO California Hot Springs

Station 15

Station 16 Lindsay Strathmore

Station 18 Kennedy Meadows

Station 19 Station 20 West Olive Doyle Colony

Station 21 Terra Bella

Station 22 Station 23 Springville Camp Nelson

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BATTALION

Station 7 Station 9 Goshen Alpaugh THREE

Station 10 Station 25 Richgrove Tulare

Station 26 Tipton

Station 27 Pixley

Station 28 Earlimart

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Demands for service within the county continue to increase keeping us consistently busy. During 2017, we received a total of 12,353 calls for service throughout the county. 7,733 of those calls were for medical responses. Medical response calls range from basic medical aid calls, to citizens in their homes requiring our assistance, to vehicle accidents on one of the many roadways in the county. Fires made up 12.33% of our responses; of which 88 incidents involved the wildland in our foothills or forests. Significant fires of this sort included the Dinely, Hogback, Roadrunner, Schaffer, Hawk, Canyon 2, LNU Complex and Pier Fires. These all occurred within the boundaries of our county and used the majority of our local resources. Our local Swift Water Team kept busy during the year as well with responses to 19 rescues. We also responded to the large scale flooding of the Kings River outside of Kingsburg. The remainder of the calls in 2017 ranged from helping fallen citizens to hazardous material incidents. Tulare County Fire is an “All Hazard” fire department and we respond to almost all incidents within the county. 13

Although the incident volume between 2016 and 2017 is very similar, the types of incidents handled in 2017 were far more complex than in 2016. TCFD continues to respond to “All Hazard” calls throughout Tulare County.

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TOTAL CALLS BY MONTH JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 947 841 958 994 1169 1138 1112 1076 998 1087 940 1093

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In & Out of County Local Incidents Dinely Fire—339 acres Lion Fire—18,900 acres Roadrunner Fire—2,289 acres Schaeffer Fire—16,031 acres Hawk Fire—2,940 acres Hogback Fire—58 acres Pier Fire—36,566 acres; 2 structures destroyed—largest Wildfire in Tulare County history Kings River Flooding—residents from 90 homes displaced

Out of County Elm Fire (Fresno County)—OES Strike Team; 10,343 acres

Tubbs Fire (Napa County)—OES 278 Type 1; 36,807 acres; 5,636 structures destroyed; 22 fatalities Atlas Fire (Napa County)—OES 8534 Type 3; 51,624 acres; 783 structures destroyed; 6 fatalities Partrick/Nuns/Adobe/Norrbom/Pressly Fires—56,556 acres; 1,355 structures destroyed; 3 fatalities Canyon II Fire (Orange County)—9,217 acres; 25 structures destroyed Cascade Fire (Yuba County)—Type 6; 9,989 acres; 264 structures destroyed; 4 fatalities Thomas Fire (Ventura County)—281,893 acres; 1,063 structures destroyed; 2 fatalities Creek Fire (Los Angeles County)—15,619 acres; 123 structures destroyed Rye Fire (Los Angeles County)—6,049 acres; 6 structures destroyed Skirball Fire (Los Angeles County)—422 acres; 6 structures destroyed Lilac Fire (San Diego County)—4,100 acres; 157 structures destroyed

Statewide—33 Fires 16

Into the Sunset

We have always appreciated the Promotions within the fire service are experience each individual brings not easy achievements. They require with them to Tulare County. So consistent hard work and dedication when one of our family retires, we to the fire service. take comfort in all they have given, We are proud of our 2017 promotees: and truly wish them the very best in To Battalion Chief: the next chapter in their lives. Derek Steidley The following heroes in our hearts retired in 2017: Bryan Duffy

Battalion Chief Doug Hicks To Captain: Battalion Chief Ted Reese Richard Doyle Lieutenant Gary Gomez Captain Greg Simeral To Lieutenant: Captain Ron Parish Christian Avalos Jasmine Enfiedjian Andrew Eggleston Joshua Ellis

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Full Time Academy Finding the right individual that will be the right fit for our Tulare County Family is a labor of love within every level of the Fire Department. We all work together to insure the new recruits are ready to take on the rigorous training academy. Last year, we welcomed three new recruits to our family. Lieutenant Heath Grim, FAE Marcus Delon and FAE Joshua Holden have been a tremendous addition to our team. On November 2, 2017, during our Family Night Extravaganza, we introduced the recruits to the Tulare County Fire family. It was a wonderful way to incorporate the new recruits and their family members into the TCFD family. On December 11, 2017, the recruits completed their academy with a graduation ceremony held at the Board of Supervisors Chambers. Supervisors Pete Vander Poel and Amy Shuklian took time out of their busy schedules to join us for this momentous occasion. Extra-Help Firefighter Academy

A career in the fire service requires a strong foundation in the basics. Our Extra-Help Firefighter Academy provides the essential training needed for folks to begin their journey in the fire service. This year’s group was very enthusiastic and was ready to hit the ground running. Congratulations to: Adrian Ramos (Station 1), Victor Barajas (Station 1), Suzette Lugo (Station 2), James Rawson (Station 2), Zachary Nelsen (Station 3), Justin Elizondo (Station 4), Matt Kimbrell (Station 11), Ashley Fonseca (Station 15), Javier Vidal Corrales (Station 19), Javier Jacuinde (Station 20), Christopher Smith (Station 21) and Kiel Wilson (Station 25).

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Dennis Villavicencio- Jason Hawes-Knights of Columbus Bryan Duffy-Exchange Club of Three Rivers Historical Visalia Firefighter of the Year Porterville Firefighter of the Society Firefighter of the Year Year

Tyson Lewis-Knights of Columbus Exeter Firefighter of the Year

Firefighter Alonso Mora-Public Servant of the Year Cutler-Orosi Lions Club

Pictured Left to Right: Dave Vasquez-Operational Employee of the Year Sandy Sneed-Support Employee of the Year Cheyenne Gist-Dispatcher of the Year

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Battle of the Badges Blood Drive Earlimart Park Dedication

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