Change is in the air for San Bernardo County fire stations in the Morongo Basin’s outlying areas. Reporter David Haldane explains…
If you’re a part time firefighter paid to answer calls in Landers, Pioneertown or Rimrock, you’ll soon be out of a job. That’s the word from the county fire department just one day after the board of supervisors voted to keep the Wonder Valley station open for another year.
Battalion Chief Mike Snow said Wednesday that the so-called “paid call” system—under which firefighters with other jobs earn money responding to calls—will be phased out by June 30. Instead, those stations will be served only by full-time firefighters from Yucca Valley bolstered by Fire Corps volunteers providing support and communications in emergencies and disasters.
In related news, Snow reported that the Johnson Valley fire station was taken over earlier this month by a homeowners group to be used for other purposes. And stations on Sierra Avenue in Joshua Tree and Lear Avenue in Twentynine Palms have been used only for storage for years.
