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Services Provided by OCFA
SERVICE AREA MAP
OCFA provides a variety of public services, including the following:
- Regionally delivers fire, emergency medical, and rescue services from 61 fire stations.
- Receives and dispatches emergency calls. The dispatcher answers the initial call, determines the type of call, jurisdiction and closest unit and dispatches units via computer aided dispatch (CAD).
- Provides public education programs to schools, businesses, community associations, childcare providers and other members of the community.
- Administers a Reserve Firefighter Program. As separate companies or in combination with one or more career companies, reserve personnel serve their community as part of OCFA's suppression forces. The program evolved from the volunteer departments which provided much of the county's fire protection in earlier years and from the former Paid-Call Firefighter program.
- Sponsors Fire Explorer posts. The Explorers are young individuals, ages 14 to 21, interested in a career in fire and emergency medical services.
- Adopts and enforces codes and ordinances relative to fire and life safety issues associated with commercial, industrial, and residential development.
- Maintains and operates firefighting helicopters used for emergency responses throughout the year. During fire season this helicopter is primarily used to fight wildland and wildland - urban interface fires.
- Coordinates the inspection of all commercial buildings,investigates all fires, and enforces hazardous materials regulations.
- Works with developers and jurisdictional planning departments on development projects impacting fire protection services, from conception through planning process approval.
- Conducts new construction inspections, fire safety inspections, and State Fire Marshal-required inspections (including high rise, jail, board and care, and day care inspections), and enforces applicable fire codes and ordinances.
- Interacts with developers, architects, and engineers to meet the fire protection requirements for buildings and developments by reviewing all architectural blue prints, development plans, and proposals submitted in OCFA's jurisdiction.
- Conducts an inventory program of hazardous materials stored, handled, and used within OCFA's jurisdiction, and maintains related information on a data base accessible to all emergency response agencies in the event of a major emergency. The information is also provided to the public regarding the location, type, and health risks of hazardous materials on a facility-specific basis.
- Conducts Uniform Fire Code inspections, assists in reducing risks associated with the use of hazardous materials in the community, and administers the State-mandated Risk Management and Prevention program.
- Investigates fires to determine their cause, prepares arson and hazardous materials cases for the district attorney, and initiates actions to recover costs for negligently caused fires. Staff also works closely with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, as well as the district attorney's office, in the investigation of hazardous materials incidents.
- Develops and maintains a fire-safe corridor between the wildland and community developments through fuel modifications and inspections.
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