Podcast #50: International Mutual Aid to California: New Zealand Shows It’s a “Kiwi Thing to Do”
At the height of the wildfire siege across California, when 15 major fires burned, there were more than 13,000 firefighters from 18 states and two other countries battling the blazes. Those countries included Australia and New Zealand. 41 of those...
Podcast #48: State Fire Chief Reflects on 40-Year Career as He Prepares to Ride Code-3 into the Sunset
Kim Zagaris, or Chief Z as some call him, is the State Fire and Rescue Chief for the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES); he was appointed on April 1, 2001. He admits his appointment rattled cages, nerves and even a few...
Podcast #47: Rattlesnake Encounters and How to Avoid Them: We’re Hands-on for Your Sssafety!
In this episode we tag along with professional rattlesnake wrangler Lou Fraser, and state park ranger Kerrie Launey. Fraser shows us the kind of habitat in which rattlesnakes can be found, and educates us on their some of their behavior and some of...
Podcast #46: Geared Up for “Super Thursday” at CSTI Hazmat Training
In this episode (#46) we take you to Super Thursday, a sort of “final exam day” for students attending the California Specialized Training Institute (CSTI) Hazmat Specialist course. We talk with Alex Cabassa, Cal OES Assistant Director, and CSTI...
Podcast #45: Filling the HazMat Response Capability Gaps in California
Cal OES and 12 assignee local government fire departments are parties to a contractual agreement permitting the use of the Cal OES Type II HazMat Response Vehicles for local emergency response, out-of-service HazMat vehicles, training, exercises,...
Podcast #44: The Thomas Fire: Critical Public Information During California’s Historic Wildfire
From December 4th to December 22nd, 2017, the Thomas Fire cost more than 177 million dollars to fight, and forced the evacuation of more than 104 thousand people and had 8,500 firefighters from 22 states simultaneously working to contain it. But...
Podcast #43: Six Months After the NorCal October 2017 Wildfires
It's been six months since the October 2017 wildfires ravaged Northern California. Through coordination with California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and in close partnership with FEMA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. EPA, Cal EPA...
Podcast #42: Sentinel Response 18 FSE and Interagency Cooperation
In recent months, California and our nation has been no stranger to devastating natural and man-made emergencies. So, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) joined the California National Guard’s Homeland Response Force...
Podcast #40: Chief Larry Collins on Haiti, Japan, Northridge and Loma Prieta Earthquakes and the Evolution of US&R
In this episode, we talk with Deputy Chief Larry Collins, who is the Cal OES Fire and Rescue Deputy Fire Chief of the Special Operations and Hazardous Material Unit. He oversees the State Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) Response Program which...
Podcast #38: Amber Anderson: At Home with the Santa Barbara Mudslide
We sit down with Amber Anderson, an 18 year veteran firefighter, and 10 year veteran of the Santa Barbara City Fire Department. She’s a member of the Santa Barbara County Type-3 Incident Management Team, a fire inspector and investigator and public...
Podcast #37: Contractors & Recovery: Disasters Bring Out the Best in People, the Worst in Some
Download this episode (right click and save) With tens of thousands of homes that need rebuilding after the fire sieges in both northern California and southern California, survivors will need reputable, licensed contractors. And contractors will...
Podcast #35: Captain Pace Stokes Takes the Helm on the Ghost Ship Fire
Captain Pace Stokes, Alameda County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, sat down with Shawn Boyd at the Alameda County Emergency Operations Center in Dublin, California. Their recording session took place on day-1 of Urban Shield....