Orange Fire Department

The Orange Fire Department (OFD) is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services (EMS) for Orange, California.

Services
The Department services 134,500 persons in an area of 24 square miles (62 km²) from eight stations. The typical response time for OFD is 3-5 minutes with an average of 4:37 for 2005. The standard response to a report of a residential structure fire is 3 engine companies, 1 truck company, 1 transportion/rescue unit and 1 Battalion Chief. The firefighters work a 24-hour shift every other day for five days and are then off for four days. Dispath for OFD is handled by the MetroNet Communications Center run by the Anaheim Fire Department.

The Department's EMS response is to send an engine company and a rescue ambulance. All firefighters employed by the Department are certified Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) and can provide basic life support until paramedics arrive. OFD has three rescue ambulances located in three different stations. Each rescue ambulance is staffed by fully trained paramedics. The ambulances can provide transport without having to wait for a private ambulance to arrive in cases of Advanced Life Support or trauma emergencies.

OFD also has a Swiftwater Rescue team that is available for deployment anywhere in Orange County. Several Department members are trained in Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) and are members of Urban Search and Rescue California Task Force 5.

Apparatus
The front-line firefighting equipment of OFD consists of eight fire engines, one truck, a rescue squad, three paramedic rescue ambulances and an SUV for the battalion chief.

OFD keeps a number of pieces of reserve equipment: one ambulance, two rescue trucks, three engines and one fire truck.

There are also a fleet of support vehicles made up of one heavy rescue wrecker and four utility trucks, one of which is equipped with a lighting system.

Every apparatus in the City of Orange has a Paramedic on board. No matter if the engine or the rescue ambulance arrives on scene first there will always be a paramedic there.

History
The Department was founded on December 14 1905 at a meeting of the City of Orange's Fire and Water committee. 29 men made up the all volunteer department. All of the volunteers were required to purchase a share of the fire company for $100. The volunteers participated in weekly training and were paid $0.50 per call if they did not need to use water to extinguish a fire and $1.00 if water was needed. False alarms also garnered $1.00 for each volunteer.

Often an alarm would lead to a fight between the volunteers 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.

The City built a $467 Fire Hall 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. In 1912, the Department acquired it first motor-driven equipment, a Seagrave pumper.

1913 saw the introduction of 15 fire alarm boxes throughout the City of Orange. The fire alarm system remained in use in the city until 1964.

The next year, 1914, the fire company hired its first full-time paid fireman who acted as a driver for the pumper. For the three years, this fireman was on duty around the clock. In 1917, a second fireman was hired to act as a relief fireman for the first.

The Deparment acquired an American LaFrance fire truck capable of pumping 1000 gallons a minute (3,785 lpm) for $13,000 in 1921. In 1934, a rescue truck was built and put into service by the Department.

The Department moved into a new headquarters in November of 1935. The old Fire Hall was converted into a senior center. In an ironic twist of fate, the Fire Hall was destroyed by a fire.

The OFD had its first chief, Chief George Horton, promoted in 1952 from within the department. Horton had started as a volunteer with the department in 1925. Under his leadership, the Department began a transition from a volunteer company to a professional, paid firefighting force. The last six volunteers retired in 1966 leaving OFD with an all paid force.

The current fire headquarters was dedicated on May 9, 1969.

In 1973, Orange became one of the first fire departments in Orange County to provide paramedic rescue service.

The current roles of the Department have expanded to include advanced life support and medical transportation, hazardous materials response, 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.