Firefighters

Several Huntington Beach firefighters were honored at an award ceremony Jan. 31 for a variety of actions including pulling people from burning buildings, saving a cat's life and controlling a trauma scene on a highway after a family vacation. The following information was provided by Battalion Chief Jeff Lopez: * MEDAL OF BRAVERY Fire Capt. Darrin Witt received the Medal of Bravery for his work at a townhouse fire. Witt responded to a fire on July 1 in the downtown area while on a fireworks suppression patrol with a police detective.

Huntington Beach firefighters were able to quickly contain a small fire that started Wednesday in the garage of a residence, authorities said. There were no injuries, and the fire was isolated to the garage in the 5700 block of Serene Drive, said Deputy Fire Marshal Jeff Lopez. Three fire engines, two trucks and a battalion chief contained the fire within 10 minutes, he said. The authorities arrived at the scene at 3:56 p.m. Damages were limited to the contents in the garage, and the cause is being investigated, Lopez said.

Still fuming over orders to stand in the background of a gubernatorial news conference while brush fires raged around the county, Burbank and Glendale fire departments came out in opposition Thursday to a ballot proposition they claim would stifle their political involvement. If approved by voters in the special Nov. 8 election, Proposition 75 would require unions representing public employees to get permission from members before spending dues for political purposes.

Firefighters have a blaze that consumed 1,100 acres of brush over four days in the Verdugo Mountains, but not without some help from local businesses and nonprofits, who were called upon to help authorities as they worked around the clock fighting fire. "They're supplying food, sandwiches, anything we need all over the place," said Kirk Wishart, an engineer with Burbank Fire, adding that Wienerschnitzel even hauled a trailer to a firefighter camp to feed personnel.

Firefighters from Costa Mesa and Newport Beach spent Wednesday night and most of Thursday battling a wildfire some 75 miles away from their coverage area. Although the Topanga fire raging in north Los Angeles County wasn't a threat to Newport-Mesa, local firefighters were called in to help. It's all part of a statewide mutual aid agreement among California fire agencies. Whether it is fighting a brush fire in the Inland Empire or sifting through floodwaters for hurricane survivors in the South, local firefighters give help wherever they are needed.

Twenty-nine days and three hurricanes later, four Newport Beach firefighters returned home safely Tuesday from a relief mission through several states in the hurricane-ravaged South. Capt. Ron Gutierrez, Capt. Chip Duncan, Fire Engineer Jim Jeziorski and Firefighter Nic Lucas, dressed uniformly in dark blue T-shirts, were greeted by fellow Newport firefighters at the baggage carousel at John Wayne Airport. Toting duffel bags and weary grins, the four men shared their stories of the three women they won't soon forget.

---- Eron Ben-Yehuda Fire officials quickly contained a second-alarm fire that broke out Wednesday in a large apartment complex on Warner Avenue in Huntington Beach. At 10 a.m., the Huntington Beach Fire Department answered a call at Ocean Breeze Villas in the 6400 block. Within 10 minutes, firefighters snuffed out the blaze, which began in the kitchen, possibly from the stove, department spokesman Don Cone said. Three people inside the apartment suffered from smoke inhalation and were taken to Huntington Beach Hospital.

Huntington Beach lacks the dry brush that has caught fire in at least a dozen places throughout the Southland this week, but that doesn’t mean the city isn’t feeling some effects of the flames. Huntington Beach firefighters are in the thick of the action trying to get neighboring areas’ blazes under control. And the effect of the widespread burning is felt here, as Santa Ana winds blow unhealthy smoke and ash through the air. The city has been sending firefighters out to help since Sunday morning, Battalion Chief Bob Brown said.

Angelique Flores and Torus Tammer FOUNTAIN VALLEY -- A basketball game Monday between a group of local firefighters and the Chinese Women's Olympic team surprised spectators with its close score. The women beat the men of the Valley Grove team, made up of Fountain Valley and Garden Grove firefighters, with a final score of 86-81 at the Fountain Valley Recreation Center. Fountain Valley Mayor Guy Carrozzo, City Manager Ray Kromer, Fire Chief Bernie Heimos and Police Chief Elvin Miali attended the two-hour game that drew about 100 spectators.

The man convicted of murdering five firefighters, one of them from Fountain Valley, was sentenced to death by a Riverside judge Friday. Raymond Lee Oyler, 38, was convicted in March on five counts of first-degree murder for starting a fire in San Gorgonio Pass in the Beaumont area that ultimately enveloped the five men in October 2006, confirmed John Hall, a public information officer for the Riverside County district attorney’s office....

Several Huntington Beach firefighters were honored at an award ceremony Jan. 31 for a variety of actions including pulling people from burning buildings, saving a cat's life and controlling a trauma scene on a highway after a family vacation. The following information was provided by Battalion Chief Jeff Lopez: * MEDAL OF BRAVERY Fire Capt. Darrin Witt received the Medal of Bravery for his work at a townhouse fire. Witt responded to a fire on July 1 in the downtown area while on a fireworks suppression patrol with a police detective.

The Huntington Beach Fire Department responded to a fire at a two-story, four-unit apartment building around 6:30 a.m. Friday in the 2000 block of Alabama Street in Huntington Beach. One unit was completely consumed by flames, but the other three apartments suffered only smoke damage and the fire was declared controlled by 6:51 a.m., according to a news release. The fire was discovered by two residents who were able to evacuate. Seven people and four dogs escaped the building without injury, according to the release.

Huntington Beach firefighters were able to quickly contain a small fire that started Wednesday in the garage of a residence, authorities said. There were no injuries, and the fire was isolated to the garage in the 5700 block of Serene Drive, said Deputy Fire Marshal Jeff Lopez. Three fire engines, two trucks and a battalion chief contained the fire within 10 minutes, he said. The authorities arrived at the scene at 3:56 p.m. Damages were limited to the contents in the garage, and the cause is being investigated, Lopez said.

The Huntington Beach Fire Department is investigating the cause of a fire that erupted as a van was getting prepped for a smog check. Firefighters responded to a call at Pro Smog, 7652 Slater Ave. No. 5, about noon Friday after a fire erupted from a van right when it was rolled into the smog bay area for a check, said Deputy Fire Marshal Jeff Lopez. With the help of a sprinkler that was activated directly above the van, firefighters were able to extinguish the fire within five minutes.

Aimee Borgmeyer wore a giant suit made of plastic bags that covered her short frame to Monday's Huntington Beach City Council meeting. "It's kind of itchy, and it's kind of bothering me," she said. But the 13-year-old had a point to make: to show the impact plastic bags have on the environment and marine life. She was there along with several others from the Surfrider Foundation in support of council members Connie Boardman, Devin Dwyer and Joe Shaw's proposal to ban single-use plastic bags at supermarkets and other stores.

"Blair Farley is everyday people. " That's the message the Huntington Beach City Council candidate wants to put out to voters as Election Day looms. As a member of Team Huntington Beach, a three-member coalition that includes Joe Shaw and former Mayor Connie Boardman, Farley believes the city in recent years has favored developers and special-interest groups over residents, and is determined to change that. "Everyone thinks every election is critical, but this one really does have potential to shape what our city looks like moving forward," said Farley, a pastor and technology director at Mariners Church in Irvine.

The Huntington Beach Fire Department is hosting an open house Saturday with live fire and vehicle extraction demonstrations. The open house will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 9 at Fire Station 1 at 18311 Gothard St. The demonstrations will happen at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. There will also be fire station tours, refreshments and an appearance by Sparky the Fire Dog. The open house will close out Fire Prevention Week which begins Sunday....

Local firefighters are trying to raise money to restore the city's first motorized engine with pancakes in the park. The Huntington Beach Firefighters' Assn. is hosting a Pancake Breakfast on Saturday in Lake Park for restoration of a 1923 Seagrave Metropolitan Pumper engine. The association has been working to bring the city's first engine back to life, but lack of funding has been holding the project back. Some of the association members have taken it upon themselves to rebuild the fire engine on their own time, doing much of the labor themselves, but they still need to raise about $10,000.

In two concrete bunkers at the Boeing Co. complex, members of the Huntington Beach Fire Department are trying to restore the city's first motorized fire engine. With the frame, engine and water pump in one room and the disassembled frame and a second fire engine in a separate room, the 1923 Seagrave Metropolitan Pumper engine doesn't look like much — yet. "Our goal is to restore it exactly like we got it in the 1920s," said Rex Rysewyk, a Fire Department engineer. The Huntington Beach Firefighter's Assn.