After relocation, fire response times within county standards

A construction crew with GMZ Engineering works to construct the foundation for the future Fire Station 104 at the corner of Golden Valley and Newhall Ranch roads on Thursday, July 26, 2018. Austin Dave/The Signal
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A Santa Clarita Valley fire station is sharing quarters with another, but response times haven’t been negatively affected, county fire officials say.

Services out of Fire Station 104, which closed April 9, have been temporarily relocated to Fire Station 150 until its new site is completed. The move led to changes in jurisdiction coverage to maintain short response times, said Assistant Fire Chief Anderson Mackey.

Fire Station 104 was once at 26201 Golden Valley Road, which is now the construction site of the city’s new sheriff’s station. Fire Station 150 is down the road at 19190 Golden Valley Road.

In response to Fire Station 104’s 3-mile move, the borders for other fire jurisdictions were redrawn so they would cover parts of 104’s territory, Mackey said.

Data from May and June 2017 compared to May and June 2018 shows that response times still fell within the countywide standard.

In May 2017, there was a total of 65 incidents in Station 104’s jurisdiction, and three units from three different stations responded with an average response time of 8 minutes, 26.5 seconds. Station 104 accounted for 63 of those incidents.

May 2018 had a total of 69 incidents and an average response time of 8 minutes, 13 seconds, with six units from six stations. The bulk was shouldered by Station 107 at 43 incidents, with Station 104’s unit responding to 16 incidents.

June 2017 had a total of 65 incidents and an average response time of eight minutes and 30 seconds with four units. Station 104 responded to 58 of those incidents.

June 2018 had a total of 76 incidents and an average response time of six minutes and 49 seconds with 12 units out of the region’s potential 14 stations responding. Station 104 responded to 23, while Station 107 again responded to 33 of those incidents.

Despite the change in headquarters, the jurisdiction’s response times have not been significantly affected.

“The response times were within the standards set for the cities that (the Los Angeles County Fire Department) protects,” Mackey said on Monday.

In April, Mackey said response times for Fire Station 104’s jurisdiction would be impacted slightly, but would still fall within the response time standards mandated by the National Fire Protection Association.

Los Angeles County set the standard for fire response times countywide as 12 minutes, 30 seconds for rural areas; 7 minutes, 47 seconds for suburban areas; and 6 minutes, 12 seconds for urban areas.

The general jurisdiction serves a mix of rural and suburban areas, Mackey said.

“We strive to be under the standards set by the National Fire Protection Association and give ourselves a stricter timeline to meet,” Fire Department Inspector Gustavo Medina said Tuesday.

Stephanie English, justice deputy for the 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s office, said new fire stations are built based on needs, changing population and response times.

Construction has begun on the new Fire Station 104 site at Golden Valley Road and Newhall Ranch Road.

The station will be 10,500 square feet and in full service by the end of 2019.

 

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