Page 7 - Community Newsletter :: Spring 2021
P. 7
El Centro Fire Department
Fire Strike Team Deployments
During the 2020 fire season, El Centro Fire Department personnel mobilized in support of five major fires, one small-scale immediate need incident, and one preposition assignment in the State of California. The five significant fires included the Apple Fire in the County of Riverside, the Carmel Fire in Monterrey County, the El Dorado Fire in San Bernardino County, the Creek Fire in the Sierra National Forest, and the Silverado Fire in Orange County. The small-scale immediate need incident was the Whale Fire in the County of San Luis Obispo. A preposition assignment was also filled in San Bernardino County.
A strike team consists of five pieces of equipment and one strike team leader. The team can be either Type 1 fire engines that provide structure protection or Type 3 brush engines to assist with fire suppression in rugged terrain. In both cases, each engine comes from a different agency and is staffed with four firefighters. Strike teams may deploy for up to 16 days. After the assignment is completed, all vehicles return home, or the personnel is swapped out with a new crew, if needed.
The ECFD routinely responds with fire personnel and units as part of the State of California Fire/Rescue Mutual Aid Program. Mutual aid assists local, state, and federal agencies in mitigating large fires and other in-state disasters. In the past, ECFD personnel have responded to historical fires in our state based on the fire’s size or the intensity at which fires have spread.
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