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In an effort to keep you up to date on the latest local, statewide, and federal fire issues, OC Firefighters send out monthly news clippings. This newsletter will help inform you about very important fire-related matters.
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California’s Destructive Wildfire Season
“Hundreds and sometimes thousands of feet above our homes, where smoke stings,
there is a netherworld of hellfire where men and women risk their
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The Fires of 2018 by CPF Firevision
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This fire season has been one of the most destructive in California’s history. 24 major wildfires have burned nearly 700,000 acres throughout the state. Thousands of homes and entire communities have been lost. 11 people have died, including six Firefighters, making this the deadliest season for Firefighters in more than a decade.
Since 2012, there hasn’t been a month without a wildfire in California. The Mendocino Complex Fire, which has become the largest in state history with more than 300,000 acres, burned an area nearly the size of Los Angeles in eleven days.
Closer to home, the Holy Fire has ravaged parts of Orange and Riverside counties burning more than 22,885 acres, including twelve structures in Orange County. More than 1,200 Firefighters battled the massive blaze with
two OC Firefighters sustaining injuries
during the firefight.
Thank you to all our Brothers and Sisters who are on the frontlines protecting life and property. Be safe out there and know that OC Firefighters stand with you!
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Watch Footage of OC Firefighters Battling the Holy Fire
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Video courtesy of the OCFA
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OC Firefighters Attend the 54th IAFF Convention
Last month, Local 3631 was honored to attend the 54
th
International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Convention and celebrate the 100
th
Anniversary of the labor union representing Firefighters throughout America and Canada. The IAFF is the driving force behind advancements in the fire and emergency services, advocating for safer working conditions, health and wellness initiatives, and fair pay and benefits for more than 310,000 professional Firefighters and Paramedics.
A number of important resolutions were passed at this convention, including a resolution that was authored by Orange County Professional Firefighters Local 3631, urging the creation of
National Firefighter Cancer Awareness Month
. The resolution passed with UNANIMOUS support from the IAFF delegates present representing 50 states and Canada.
To view a copy of the final version of this resolution, click
HERE
.
As Firefighters, we are tragically familiar with the fact that our brothers and sisters in the fire service are more likely to develop cancer than the general public. Cancer is the leading cause of Line of Duty Deaths for Firefighters nationwide and this resolution requests that the IAFF work in conjunction with the Firefighter Cancer Support Network to provide scientific research, training resources and collaboration in the fire service to share information and best practices to reduce the cancer risk to Firefighters.
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Congratulations OCFA Fire Captains
On August 23rd, 16 OCFA Firefighters were promoted to Captain. These individuals endured six weeks of rigorous training and testing that was developed by the OCFA in collaboration with Local 3631. Congratulations to all of the new Fire Captains, including our own Reid Gibson who serves as Director of the Orange County Professional Firefighters Association.
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Holy Fire: Brush Fire Burns 4,000 Acres In Cleveland National Forest; 2 OCFA Firefighters Injured
CLEVELAND NATIONAL FOREST - A brush fire Monday tore through an area of the Cleveland National Forest that officials estimated hadn’t burned in nearly four decades. The blaze in the Holy Jim Canyon area of Orange County started just after 1 p.m. and quickly grew to as large as 100 acres, according to the Orange County Fire Authority.
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Video courtesy of OnScene.TV
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Holy Fire: Flames reignite near Santiago Peak in Cleveland National Forest
CLEVELAND NATIONAL FOREST - Firefighters were responding Monday to renewed fire activity in the Holy Fire burn area, officials said. Although the 22,885-acre Holy Fire was officially 91 percent contained, video from a stationary camera atop Santiago Peak near Trabuco Canyon showed active flames and massive plumes of smoke shortly after 10 a.m.
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A staggering death toll for firefighters in California's summer of flames
Ben Newburn faced a group of weary firefighters gathered a few mornings ago with one message: Safety before anything else. The veteran fire management officer for U.S. Forest Service recounted the numerous firefighters who had lost their lives battling massive blazes in the region. There was Andrew Palmer, who died 10 years ago while clearing trees. And the nine firefighters killed in 2008 when their helicopter crashed in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, an incident seared in history as the “Iron 44 tragedy.”
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Fire at San Juan Capistrano Condo Complex Hospitalizes One
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO - One person was hospitalized Wednesday, Aug. 8, following a fire at an condominium complex in San Juan Capistrano. The fire was reported a little after 4 p.m. in the 26300 block of Eastview Court. Orange County Fire Authority Batallion Chief Jeter McAlpin said the two-alarm fire initially began in a single-car garage before spreading to the interior of one of the condos.
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2 People Rescued From House Fire in Santa Ana
SANTA ANA - Two people were rescued from a house fire in Santa Ana on Friday night, a fire official said. One person was critically injured; the other had minor injuries, according to Capt. Alan Wilkes of the Orange County Fire Authority.
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Firefighters respond to burning building in Santa Ana
SANTA ANA - A fire engulfed a Santa Ana one-story commercial building Tuesday afternoon as firefighters worked to put it out. The building fire, located on the 2100 Block of South Yale Street, was reported at approximately 1:53 p.m. to the Orange County Fire Authority.
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Firefighters put out 1,000-acre brush fire at Camp Pendleton
CAMP PENDLETON - A brush fire that ignited at Camp Pendleton over the weekend and grew to 1,000 acres has been extinguished, officials said Monday. It started about noon Sunday on a training range near the center of the sprawling U.S. Marine Corps base. By 7 p.m., it was 50 percent contained. The fire was extinguished about four hours later, said Camp Pendleton spokesman Carl Redding. Cal Fire, the Orange County Fire Authority and the North County Fire Protection District assisted the base’s fire personnel.
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29-Year-Old Woman Among 5 Killed in Small Plane Crash in Santa Ana
SANTA ANA - A small plane crashed at a parking lot in Santa Ana on Sunday afternoon, killing all five people aboard — including a 29-year-old woman visiting from the Bay Area. The Cessna 414 declared an emergency and went down at a mall parking lot near John Wayne Airport at 12:28 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said. The twin-engine aircraft crashed near the South Coast Plaza shopping mall, in the 3900 block of Bristol Street, said Tony Bommarito, a spokesman for Orange County Fire Authority.
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Brush Fire Burns 60 Acres At Camp Pendleton
CAMP PENDLETON - A brush fire sparked Thursday on Camp Pendleton, burning dozens of acres and sending smoke into the air. The blaze broke out in the 53 area of the military base. Firefighters from Camp Pendleton and the Orange County Fire Authority battled the flames. The OCFA sent a brush engine, helicopter and battalion chief to assist with the firefighting efforts.
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Brush Fire Halted In Laguna Niguel
LAGUNA NIGUEL - A brush fire was reported at just before 9:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, in the area of Alicia Parkway and Marketplace Drive, according to Orange County Fire Authority. Smoke could be seen from Aliso Viejo, according to residents.
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In a rare move, Orange County helicopter called in to battle vehicle fire
241 TOLL ROAD - A 2014 Dodge Ram that had stopped in a northbound lane due to a mechanical failure erupted in flames at about 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, roughly 1.5 miles north of the Santiago Canyon Road exit. The Orange County Fire Authority immediately diverted a helicopter, which had been grounded at Irvine Lake in between trips to help fight the Holy fire. It made two separate drops onto the burning truck.
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Red-Light Runner Slams Into Family Car with Mom, Three Children
LAS FLORES - A 46-year old Murrieta man citing "fatigue" slammed into a family minivan with three children under 10 on Friday, July 27. The traffic collision took place at 8:34 with multiple injuries in Las Flores unincorporated. 5 total patients including 3 pediatric traumas. All patients were transported to a local trauma center.
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Two Hurt In Semi-Truck Vs. Car Crash In Northeast OC
YORBA LINDA - A big rig and another car crashed, sending the semi careening off the Imperial Highway at Casa Loma in Yorba Linda, Monday. Two women suffered injuries in the collision, Orange County Fire Authority reported, both were taken to the hospital as trauma patients at just before noon.
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Bicyclists, pedestrian hurt after chain-reaction crash in San Clemente
SAN CLEMENTE - Four people were hospitalized after a speeding pickup truck lost control and collided with four parked vehicles, injuring two bicyclists and a pedestrian in a chain-reaction crash in San Clemente on Sunday, Aug. 12.
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Southern California fire that’s putting 20,000 people under evacuation orders may have been set intentionally
About 20,000 residents are under mandatory evacuation orders after a Southern California fire — which authorities say was set intentionally — spread this week. The Holy Fire started Monday in the Cleveland National Forest and has so far destroyed 12 structures, according to fire authorities. A man has been arrested in connection with the fire that is wreaking havoc near the border between Orange and Riverside counties, which are among the most populous counties in California.
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Gov. Brown: California in ‘uncharted territory’ with wildfires
Gov. Jerry Brown painted a grim picture Wednesday of California’s future as thousands of firefighters have flown in from across the country to battle the 16 wildfires raging through the state. Five of the 10 most destructive wildfires in California history have occurred in just the past five years, and the Carr Fire, currently burning in and around Redding, stands as the sixth most destructive wildfire in state history, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.
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California Wildfires: The lives lost across the state
The 2018 fire season in California is shaping up to be an incredibly deadly year. These are the residents who died in the blazes.
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Supervisor Bartlett Asks Public to Support Our Firefighters
In the wake of the horror of the #Holy Fire in the Cleveland National Forest — which has suffered significantly over the past decade from the Arizona-to-California firewood invasive species "Gold Spotted Oak Borer", we here in the private sector can support our public sector counterparts to save lives, animals, property, structures. Orange County 5th District Supervisor Lisa A. Bartlett's office just released ways we can actively help our amazing Orange County Fire Authority Firefighters.
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Orange County Fire Authority, Sheriff's Department repair relationship with joint operations plan
The Orange County Fire Authority and Orange County Sheriff's Department said they're starting fresh by entering into a new joint operations plan for their helicopters to better serve the community.
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Verizon lifts data restrictions on first responders after criticism for slowing service to firefighters
Verizon Wireless on Friday said it will immediately stop imposing data speed restrictions on first responders throughout the West Coast and Hawaii after facing intense criticism for reducing service to firefighters battling California’s largest-ever wildfire.
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Corona Names Brian Young As New Fire Chief
The City of Corona is pleased to announce the appointment of Brian Young as the City’s new Fire Chief, effective August 10, 2018. Chief Young joins Corona with twenty-eight years of fire service with the Orange County Fire Authority.
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2017 Orange County Firefighters Year In Review
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We are proud to present the inaugural Orange County Firefighters Year in Review photo book! In 2017, our Firefighters responded to more than 141,000 emergencies throughout the 23 cities and unincorporated communities of Orange County - an average of 505 emergency calls per day. Click
HERE
to view the book.
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OC Firefighters - IAFF Local 3631 | 1900 East Warner Ave Ste G | Santa Ana | CA | 92705
THIS MESSAGE WAS CREATED BY JIMMY BLACKMAN & ASSOCIATES.
Copyright © 2017 OC Firefighters, all rights reserved.
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