C3401 – Deputy Chief
The Operations Division is overseen by the Deputy Chief and provides a continuity of service related to fire control and suppression, rescue, advanced life support/emergency medical assistance, and the mitigation of hazardous materials incidents.
D3403 – Coastal Division
The Coastal Division is Overseen by Division 3403. The Coastal Division encompass Battalions 1, 2, and 6 as well as Cuesta Conservation Camp and Toro Fire Center.
Battalion 1 encompasses approximately 300,963 acres and is situated along the Pacific Ocean from the Monterey County Boundary in the north to approximately Point Buchon in the south. Its eastern
boundary runs along the ridge of the Santa Lucia Range and extends eastward to the City limits of Atascadero and southward to the boundary of the City of San Luis Obispo. The City of Morro Bay and the community of Cambria are located along the Pacific Ocean in the western portion of the Battalion.
Battalion 2 encompasses approximately 458,830 acres and is situated along the southern boundary
of the County, adjacent the Cuyama River. Planning Area 3 stretches the entire length of the County, from Kern County in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and is bisected by the Los Padres National Forest (LPF) in the central portion of the Planning Area. Its northern boundary runs along the boundary of the LPF, adjacent the ridge of the Garcia and Caliente Ranges and extends northward to include the City of San Luis Obispo.
Battalion 6 encompasses approximately 29,768 acres and is situated in the Irish Hills along the coast between approximately Point Buchon in the northwest to the eastern-most portion of the City of Pismo Beach in the southeast.
D3404 – Community Risk Reduction Division
The Community Risk Reduction Division is Overseen by Division 3404. The Division encompasses Fire Marshal, Fleet Management, and Fuels Reduction/Resource Management.
The County Fire Marshal’s Office provides fire/life safety plan review and field inspection of all unincorporated county construction projects. Projects range from single family residences to commercial/industrial construction.
The Fire Marshal’s Office reviews development plans to ensure projects meet the minimum code requirements for adequate fire apparatus access and water supplies. Building plans are reviewed to ensure projects meet the fire and building codes for fire/life safety requirements for fire rated construction, occupant egress systems, fire sprinkler systems, and fire alarm systems.
CAL FIRE engages in fuels reduction work and fire prevention activities year-round. Preventing uncontrolled wildfire spread in the State Responsibility Area (SRA) is a vital part of CAL FIRE’s mission. Fuels reduction activities are a key tool for fire fighters, land managers, and property owners. These activities include the removal or reduction of overgrown vegetation through the use of prescribed fire, tree thinning, pruning, chipping, and roadway clearance, among others. The purpose of any fuels reduction project is to reduce and rearrange the vegetation, creating breaks in fuel continuity that change fire behavior, reduce negative ecosystem impacts and enable firefighters to protect communities.
Maintaining the sustainability of natural resources is the goal of the Resource Management Program. The Department achieves this goal by administering state and federal forestry assistance programs for landowners, demonstrating sound management practices, enforcing the California Forest Practice Act on all non-federal timberlands, providing research and educational outreach to the public on forest pests such as Sudden Oak Death, and coordinating efforts for fuel reduction to reduce the risk of fire and improve the quality of California ecosystems.
D3405 – Inland Division
The Inland Division is Overseen by Division 3405. The Inland Division encompass Battalions 3,4, and 5, the Nacimiento Fire Center, as well as the Paso Robles Air Attack Base.
Battalion 3 encompasses approximately 567,495 acres and is situated along the northern edge of the County from the Monterey County boundary in the North to the ridge of the Santa Lucia Range in the west. Its southern boundary extends roughly eastward from the City of Atascadero, but excludes the Santa Lucia Range.
Battalion 4 encompasses approximately 767,760 acres and is situated in the central portion of the County between Battalion 4 to the north and Battalion 3 to the south and is bisected by the
LPF. Its eastern boundary abuts Kern County, and its western extends up to the City of Atascadero.
Battalion 5 encompasses approximately 567,495 acres and is the Northeast section of the county which is situated along the upper eastern edge boundary with Kern County through the Bitterwater Valley/Tremor Mountain range (San Andreas Fault line), Northeast boundary with Fresno County and the North boundary with Monterey County. The Western edge of the planning area includes, Camp Roberts, San Miguel, eastern Paso Robles, and eastern Atascadero. Southern boundary runs along Granite Ridge and heads east just north of Hwy 58 until it reaches the Kern County line again at the Bitterwater Valley Road intersection.
Battalion 7 Oversees the California National Guard Crews at the Nacimiento Fire Center.
The Paso Robles Air-Attack Base emergency response air program includes 2 Grumman S-2T, 1,200 gallon airtankers, and 1 OV-10A airtactical aircraft. The Paso Robles Air Attack Base provides tactical coordination with the incident commander on the ground, providing information on the movement and spread of the fire as well as initial and extended attack delivery of fire retardant on wildland fires.
D3407 – Santa Barbara/Ventura Division
The Santa Barbara/Ventura Division oversees Operations at the Ventura Training Center, the Camarillo Fire Center and is the Agency Representative to both the Santa Barbara and Ventura County Fire Departments.
The Camarillo Center is the only California Conservation Corps residential program located in Southern California. The Camarillo Center partners with CAL FIRE and other organizations for unique and meaningful training and projects.
As of 2018 CAL FIRE operates the Ventura Training Center in partnership with CDCR and CCC.
Ventura Camp built in 1989 serves the rural areas of Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, parts of
the Los Padres National Forest and provides coverage for the watersheds and recreational areas of Lake Cachuma, Lake Casitas, Lake Piru and Lake Sherwood. The Ventura Conservation Camp previously served as a juvenile fire camp until it was closed in December 2011 due to the declining juvenile ward population.
Operations is divided into six field Battalions and seven specialized teams; each with its own operational challenges. Staffing for the entire county is accomplished by cooperative agreements between CAL FIRE, the County of San Luis Obispo, Los Osos and Avila Community Service Districts, and the City of Pismo Beach. This regionalized approach to fire protection allows us to provide cost effective, all risk, professional fire protection to the public.
Unit Personnel Summary; 1 Unit Chief, 1 Deputy Chief, 5 Division Chiefs, 19 Battalion Chiefs, 116 Fire Captains (8 Captain Medics), 88 Engineers (8 Engineer Medics), 5 Firefighter II’s (3 Firefighter II Medics), 108 peak staffing and 15 off peak Firefighter I’s, 20 Reserve Firefighters, 25 Lifeguards, 25 Administrative Staff.
Unit Equipment Summary; 14 staffed ICS type II Engines, 12 staffed ICS type III Engines, 2 Medium Rescues, 4 Squads, 1 Haz Mat Unit, 1 Breathing Support, 2 Boats, 3 Rescue Water Crafts (RWC), 3 staffed ICS type II Dozers, 12 Hand Crews, 1 staffed Air Attack plane, 2 staffed ICS type II Air Tankers.