Ayatollah

So if that's true, explain how the agencies that run AO and/or ambulance service programs are performing ambulance transportation within their jurisdictions? Long Beach, Huntington Beach, Chula Vista, Downey to name just a few. I don't doubt what you're saying was the law at one time, but something must have changed legally to allow a workable process for establishing a BLS transportation system. In my opinion, the handwriting is on the wall, SDFR is headed in the direction of providing BLS service in the future.

I can't speak for SDFR but here's my opinion having driven and been assigned to, both tillered and elevated platforms. Due to personnel costs, salary, benefits, training, etc., agencies are stretched thin, firefighters are tasked with a multitude of responsibilities. So what does that translate into? Truck companies going on more EMS calls, stations with "stand-alone" trucks, and it being much more common to see ALS truck companies. It's now not unheard of for some departments to have trucks running 10 to 12, or even more calls a shift. I bring that all up because in my opinion, and that of others in the fire service, if you're going to run ten plus calls a shift on a truck, it's way easier to do so in a tillered apparatus than in an elevated platform. Don't get me wrong, the elevated platforms are great to utilize at fires and in many physical rescue situations...once you get to where the incident is and commit to where you'll set-up and operate from. But I found those rigs to be slow, cumbersome, and a real pain to drive in traffic and on narrow streets.

AC's are currently using Tahoes (only exception might be the Camps AC who could possibly be using a Superintendent vehicle). AC's are on a forty-hour workweek out of fire stations but along with Deputy Chiefs, are rotated on-call after hours. Field AC's (going strictly off memory) AC1 out of FS158, AC2/FS154, AC3/FS150, AC4/FS30, AC5/FS129?, AC6/FS164, AC7/FS70, AC8/FS181, AC9/FS4. As far as BC call signs, forty-hour BC's all have designators. Camps are in the 40's but I don't recall the breakdown of the others (e.g. Prevention BC's, etc.) If you see a designator on a BC vehicle outside of 1 thru 22, it's a forty-hour BC.

Just to add, on these occasions when numerous fires are burning throughout California and/or extreme fire weather is occurring, it's kind of an "all hands on deck" mode. Many front-line rigs will be on incidents or assigned to strike teams and many, if not all reserve apparatus, will be staffed and either formed into strike teams or used to backfill stations. Light forces are split, with the engine component fully staffed. Even rigs assigned to Training Services will be pressed into service if necessary. Although it sounds like E582 was actually filling in at FS82 for E82, it doesn't always work out as "clean" as that. As the mad scramble for reserve rigs goes on to replace front-line apparatus throughout the county, an engine like E582 could just about as easily end up in Palos Verdes, Diamond Bar, or Lancaster being used to replace one of their rigs.

I'm not sure if you're aware, but many of the patrols for LACoFD are not staffed on a day-to-day basis. Generally speaking, the patrols you hear on a regular basis being dispatched to rescues, or adding themselves to calls, are the ones staffed 24/7. Since the majority of engines are three-person, the patrol firefighter essentially is the fourth person and hence, get added to the call. In a few instances, the firefighter staffing the patrol, also cross-staffs a water tender. The unstaffed patrols will get staffed under certain situations when augmented due to weather or to create Type 6 strike teams. In the aforementioned circumstances, the patrols are staffed with a captain and firefighter. This will also occur with the "normally staffed" patrols which have a captain added to their staffing. Under non-augmented staffing conditions, the stations with unstaffed patrols will occasionally cross-staff their patrol for responses in areas that have rough or narrow road conditions.

The aforementioned replies are accurate. In addition, the "400 series" squads took the place of the former Mobile Aids which are staffed as line medic units for extended wildland incidents within the county. This allows for the local squad or squads assigned to the wildland incident to go back in service. These squads have also been staffed with personnel to cover squads when they are occasionally taken out-of-service for mandatory training.

Sorry, didn't mean to go off but if a guy is going to bad-mouth my agency, he needs to speak facts when he does. We're not perfect, but don't start speculating, speaking half-truths or making stuff up.

Read your original post. You're basically ripping the County because they "won't" build 116's a new station but they "offered" to build Hermosa Beach a new fire station and you added in an "SMH" as if to emphasize how ridiculous that is. I'm pointing out that you, as many people do, over simplify these situations. I'm passing on the fact that one has nothing to do with the other. The rumor about a property owner refusing to sell property to the County, yep, I heard that one too. Whether it is true or not, whether it would have resulted in a new station, an addition to the existing station or just a bigger parking lot, who knows? But it still doesn't have anything to do with the Hermosa annexation and/or FS100 renovation/rebuild. Speaking of Hermosa, yes the firefighter's union supported the merger with the County. But the citizens were "sold a bill of goods"? I'm not going to explain the whole history of how the annexation came about but in simple terms, you know not what you speak of.

It's way more complex than that. Two separate issues. Although 116's is cramped and a new station would be nice, the procuring of land, at a suitable and central location, plus funding it, is a tall order. It is a minor inconvenience to utilize a standard cab squad in order to make things work. This is especially true since an additional station will likely be built in west Carson somewhere between 116's and 36's area. This might occur in the next five to ten years and could trigger some movement of equipment. Hermosa Beach had to build a new station regardless if they contracted with the County or not. They are paying for it, not the County. It has nothing to do with 116's. It wasn't a case of Hermosa needs a new station so were not going to build a new 116's.

If there is a ban on the chrome wheel covers, it would be because of some type of safety issue with visual inspection of the actual wheels themselves. I'm not sure that a ban on these has been implemented, but if so, the aforementioned would be the reason. Otherwise the wheels are to be painted red. Black is not approved.

The areas you mention each have their own set of politics, tax base issues, regulatory issues and union concerns. It is way more complex than just 'turning over' an area to another agency. Those areas do have auto aid agreements in place which improve coverage. On a side note about this topic. Nothing official has come out from the Department internally about this addition to 51's. It doesn't mean it isn't true. It doesn't mean it won't happen. It doesn't mean it's not needed. There has been talk off and on about putting a truck in service there for years. It is a huge expense to do so and my guess is it probably is tied in with some larger expansion/master plan for Universal. That would lead me to think it'll happen later rather than sooner. IMO