New Response Unit In Oxnard!

The Oxnard Fire Department is excited and proud to put into service a new response apparatus. Light and Air 65 (LA 65) will respond out of Oxnard Fire Station 5 on 1450 Colonia Rd. The unit will be cross staffed by the assigned crew from Engine 65. This marks the second introduction of a new response apparatus in the City of Oxnard.

A Light and Air is an essential resource for any Fire Department; especially in a city the size of Oxnard. LA 65 better equips the Fire Department to handle a major disaster by increasing its ability to be self-sufficient while outside resources respond. The arrival of this unit was made possible by a regional FEMA AFG in the amount of $450,000.

As a support unit Light and Air 65 will respond to incidents that exceed the resource needs of a single engine. The unit can be special requested, but will respond to all hazardous material incidents, working fires, extended rescues, and anytime additional lighting capabilities are needed.

The main function of this unit is to refill used air cylinders. Within the first 40 minutes of an incident a single firefighter can use 2 to 4 air cylinders. With only a limited amount of cylinders available on each engine and truck the Light and Air will refill the air cylinders allowing firefighters to continue to mitigate the incident.

This unit marks a significant change in Oxnard Fire Departments response capabilities. Until this point outside agencies were relied on to respond a Light and Air unit to calls in the city limits through our automatic aid system. The Oxnard Fire Department will now be able to not only cover this response need in Oxnard, but also provide automatic and mutual aid to Camarillo, Ventura, Port Hueneme, and even further. While this unit will serve as a regional resource, the priority will always be to serve the citizens of Oxnard.

November 17^th 2018 another new resource was added to the Oxnard Fire Department Fleet; Squad 68. This was the first Advanced Life Support (ALS) unit in the history of Oxnard Fire. This unit was put in service in a strategic location to ensure that the citizens of Oxnard receive prompt ALS care.

With two new units being put in service less than three months apart, Oxnard Fire is continuing to grow in a fiscally responsible way and meet the needs of the city we serve. Light and Air 65 is expected to be in service on January 31st.