Laguna Beach fire chief will retire in August

After more than 20 years with the city of Laguna Beach, Fire Chief Jeff LaTendresse will retire in August, the city said in a news release Friday.

LaTendresse is the city’s 18th fire chief and has served in the role since October 2012, the release said.

“We very much appreciate the service and dedication Chief LaTendresse has provided to the community,” city manager John Pietig said in the release. “His passion for the fire service and protecting the community is exceptional.”

“I have been thinking about it for some time and was able to work it out so that the city manager [John Pietig] could get an interim chief to line up with my retirement,” LaTendresse wrote in an email. “It has been a very rewarding career.”

During his years with Laguna, LaTendresse responded to many fire events and significant disasters, including the 1997-98 floods, the 2005 Bluebird Canyon landside and the 2010 floods, according to the release.

LaTendresse worked with Pietig, members of the fire department and the City Council to expand paramedic services to all fire engines and hired a civilian fire marshal, the release said.

He started his career in 1982 as a fire explorer with the Redondo Beach Fire Department. LaTendresse, who served as a firefighter in the United States Air Force, also worked for Cathedral City and Indio fire departments.

Kirk Summers will be appointed as interim fire chief, beginning Aug. 7, according to the release.

Summers has 37 years of experience in fire service, including stints as fire chief of the Chino Valley Independent Fire District, and interim fire chief of San Gabriel.

bryce.alderton@latimes.com

Twitter: @AldertonBryce

UPDATES:

2:45 p.m. July 5: This article was updated with a statement from Fire Chief Jeff LaTendresse.

This article was originally published at 12:29 p.m. July 3.