Orange City Fire Department

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Orange City Fire Department

Operational area
Country	United States
State	California
City	Orange
Agency overview[1]
Established	1905
Annual calls	16,461 (2019)
Employees	135
Annual budget	$26,111,091 (2021-2022)
Staffing	Career
Fire chief	Sean P. deMetropolis
EMS level	7PAU 1 BLS y
IAFF	2384
Facilities and equipment[1]
Battalions	1
Stations	8
Engines	7- frontline 4 - reserve
Trucks	1 PAU (T1) 1 Reserve
Quints	1 PAU (T6)
Squads	US&R1
Rescues	4 - frontline 3 -reserve
USAR	1
Wildland	1 - Type 3
Website
Official website
IAFF website

The Orange Fire Department (OFD) provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Orange, California.^[2] The department is responsible for a population of approximately 140,000 people spread across 27 square miles (70 km²).^[2] Along with their standard firefighting apparatus, the department also has a swiftwater rescue team that is available for deployment anywhere in Orange County.

History[]

The Orange Fire Department, as it was known in the beginning, came into existence on December 14, 1905 at a meeting between the city's Fire and Water Committees.^[3] Twenty-nine men signed up to join the all volunteer fire department. The volunteers were paid 50 cents a call if they didn't have to use water, $1 if they did and were also paid $1 per false alarm. Early on, there were often fights between the volunteers when an alarm went off, as they battled to see which would be the ones to pull the ladder wagon or hose cart to the fire, thus earning the pay for the call.^[3]

In 1906, the City of Orange built a Fire Hall (which cost only $467, at the time) to house the fire apparatus and the 40 foot (12 m) bell tower used to sound fire alarms. The original apparatus was a horse-drawn hook and ladder wagon and two-hand drawn carts. It wasn't until 1912 that the department acquired it first motor-driven equipment, a Seagrave pumper.^[3] The first paid firefighter, William Vickers, was hired by the Department in 1914 and he lived upstairs at the Fire Hall for an $8-a-month rent. This Fire Hall acted as OFD's headquarters until November 1935, when the department built another facility. Incidentally, said facility eventually burned down.^[4]

An American LaFrance fire truck capable of pumping 1,000 gallons a minute was purchased for $13,000 in 1921, making the Orange Fire Department the first firefighting agency in Orange County to purchase and utilize a motorized fire engine.^[5]

By 1966 the department had fully transitioned from a volunteer department, to full-time career.

In 1973, the department became one of the first in Orange County to provide paramedic rescue service.^[4]

Today OFD's responsibilities include fire suppression, expanded advanced life support and medical transportation, increased responses for hazardous materials and environmental monitoring, technical rescue operations including urban search and rescue, swift water rescue, confined space and trench rescue, disaster preparedness, public education, fire prevention and fire/arson investigation. The Department has had 19 fire chiefs.^[4]

As of January 2021, a new fire headquarters is under construction on a 1.5 acre, city-owned site located at East Chapman Avenue at Water Street. The new facility will replace the current 50-year-old fire headquarters and will provide for increased administrative and training space, as well as increased room for fire apparatus. The total cost of the project, including design, construction, and outfitting, is estimated at 24.9 million USD$.^[6]

Stations & Apparatus[]

The department has 8 stations spread across the city. There are 2 Engine Companies at Stations 1 and 7.^[7]

A map of all fire stations in the City of Orange

Metro Cities Fire Authority[]

The Orange City Fire Department is part of the which provides emergency communications for multiple departments in and around Orange County.^[8] The call center, known as Metro Net Fire Dispatch, is located in Anaheim and provides 9-1-1 fire and EMS dispatch to over 1.2 million residents covering an area of 200 square miles (520 km²). Other departments included in Metro Net include Anaheim Fire & Rescue, Brea Fire Department, Fountain Valley, Fullerton Fire Department, Huntington Beach Fire Department, and Newport Beach Fire Department.^[8]

References[]

Coordinates: 33°48′11″N 117°49′57″W / 33.80306°N 117.83250°W / 33.80306; -117.83250