Fire Department Picks Deputy Chief

Dave Festerling, a 27-year veteran of the Ventura County Fire Department, has been named deputy chief, county fire officials announced.

Festerling, 49, a longtime Thousand Oaks resident, was born and raised in Ventura County. He began his firefighting career with the county in 1970. In the next 21 years, he served as fire engineer, fire captain, fire crew superintendent and battalion chief. In 1991, he was promoted to assistant chief, overseeing field operations.

“I’m very optimistic about the department. We’ve got the right chief [Bob Roper], he’s easy to work with and follow, and the whole department is happy,” Festerling said. “Our goal now is to bring the Fire Department into the cities and to make more contact with the people.”

Firefighting in Ventura County has changed dramatically since Festerling first suited up, he said.

“When I first started, it was just fighting fires. Now, we do medical rescues, hazardous materials spills--it’s a lot more demanding,” he said.

“We want to get back to rock-solid operations readiness and performance,” he said. “We have a great work force, and I feel we are on our way to do better things.”