CYPRESS : Hearing to Focus on Fire Station Crew

Firefighter Craig Campbell, who has started a personal crusade to put paid firefighters into one of the few remaining all-volunteer fire stations in the county, will take his argument to the City Council tonight.

Campbell, who asserts that the all-volunteer force at Station 12 endangers people’s lives, will square off in a public hearing against a contingent of county officials who say his charges are unfounded.

At issue will be Campbell’s claims that the force is not properly trained and does not respond quickly enough to emergencies.

During the past year, Campbell, a captain with the Westminster Fire Department who lives in the area covered by Station 12, has been investigating the station. In making his charges, he cites memos he secretly obtained from the Orange County Fire Department that he says show Station 12 has failed to respond at all during some emergencies.

“If you crash in one part of Cypress, you get a paid professional. If you crash in another part, you don’t. They are gambling whether they can even muster up enough guys to go on the call,” Campbell said.

County fire officials maintain that Station 12 is adequately staffed and is backed up by Station 13 and Station 17, which have paid personnel. They also deny that training is inadequate, noting that many of the 23 volunteers are firefighters who have worked for other departments.

“We have a regional fire protection service,” Deputy Chief Ken MacLeod said. “Whatever is the closest unit is the one we will send.”

MacLeod admitted that occasionally a volunteer or other fire station is not able to respond to a call but said it is not typical. “I am not saying it has never happened,” MacLeod said. “(Campbell) is alleging it is a regular occurrence. That is not accurate.”

MacLeod said he could not confirm whether the memos Campbell has cited are from the county. “He has information that we can’t validate or confirm,” MacLeod said. “What we are going to present is official documentation from our record-keeping system.”

The issue is slated for a public hearing at the City Council meeting, which begins at 7:30 p.m.