County fire, ambulance response times reviewed; council receives report and staff highlights preparedness steps

The Hermosa Beach City Council on Sept. 9 voted to receive and file a semiannual report on Los Angeles County Fire and McCormick Ambulance response performance and to note National Preparedness Month activities.

Emergency Management Coordinator Maurice Wright presented response metrics for January–June 2025. Wright said County Fire routinely met the contractual goal of first apparatus arrival (within 15 minutes) and that the city’s emergency medical service calls averaged significantly under the 9‑minute goal for emergency responses: "Most of these calls being EMS calls, and they meet that in under 4 minutes and 30 seconds," Wright reported.

Wright and staff also reviewed McCormick Ambulance performance; McCormick met the 15‑minute response goal for code‑2 calls about 90% of the time but had three of six months where code‑3 emergency responses exceeded the 9‑minute goal. Staff said the predominant causes of McCormick delays were distance and hospital 'wall time'—the time an ambulance remains at an emergency department while the patient is transferred—rather than dispatch performance. Wright noted hospitals require ambulances to stay with patients until ER staff accept custody.

The council followed with a broader preparedness briefing. Wright described steps the city has taken to improve evacuation and sheltering preparedness: adoption of the Genesys public evacuation app (LA County app that pushes zone‑specific evacuation messages), an updated local hazard mitigation plan approved by Cal OES and FEMA (required for reimbursement eligibility), Red Cross shelter agreements with the school district, a "Be Ready" symposium for residents, and possible funding options for tsunami siren upgrades and beach evacuation planning.

"Residents have to do nothing: if we have a disaster we will then send an email, text to residents with a link...They can click it. They'll see what zone they're in," Wright said of the Genesys evacuation tool. He said the updated hazard mitigation plan was overdue and helps preserve federal reimbursement eligibility after disasters.

Council members asked follow‑up questions about ambulance hospital wait times and possible remedies; staff said the issue is regional and noted ongoing discussions between ambulance providers and hospital systems to reduce wall time. The council then voted to receive and file the presentation; a roll call recorded unanimous approval.

Councilmembers and staff highlighted National Preparedness Month outreach and encouraged residents to review evacuation zones and preparedness steps; staff will continue to coordinate with LA County Fire and ambulance providers and return with any recommended policy actions if regional solutions for wall time do not materialize.