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Calimesa fire chief outlines remote-rescue challenges, warns of new "Zone 0" wildfire rules
Summary
Calimesa Fire Chief Andrew O'Connell told the City Council the department struggled to reach a remote, off‑road crash victim and described state-mandated "Zone 0" fuel‑reduction rules that will require municipalities to adopt municipal‑code changes within 30 days of map publication.
Calimesa Fire Chief Andrew O'Connell on March 3 told the City Council that firefighters faced major access problems and life‑threatening delays while responding to a remote off‑road motorcycle crash in the hills, and he warned that upcoming state wildfire‑hazard mapping will impose new local requirements, including a narrow "Zone 0" around homes.
The chief described a recent response in which a 16‑year‑old rider was pinned under a vehicle in a remote area. Crews had difficulty locating and reaching the patient, considered performing a helicopter retrieval and ultimately removed the victim from under the vehicle; the patient was transported in critical condition, O'Connell said.
Those access problems, he told the council, are part of a larger pattern. The department is seeing growing call volumes —…
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