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New San Francisco fire chief outlines priorities; city celebrates seismic‑safe Station 5
Summary
Chief Janine Nicholson presented initial priorities — budget, disaster preparedness and command‑staff appointments — and Deputy Chief Victor Wersch reported operations, EMS6 outcomes and training activity. Mayor London Breed and other city leaders used a Station 5 ribbon‑cutting to propose a 2020 seismic bond.
Janine Nicholson, sworn in recently as chief of the San Francisco Fire Department, used her May 8 report to the Fire Commission to outline immediate priorities including finalizing the department budget, advancing disaster-preparedness work with the Department of Emergency Management and strengthening internal incident management teams.
Nicholson announced appointments to the command staff: Deputy Chief Victor Wersch and Deputy Chief Jose Velo, and named Assistant Deputy Chief Sandy Tong to EMS duties. She said the department will schedule visits to fire stations so command staff can hear directly from field personnel and learn operational needs.
Nicholson said the capital plan (referred to as the Easter 2020 capital plan in the meeting) has passed departmental review and is scheduled for the Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee hearing on June 6. She also noted a long‑awaited memorandum of understanding with the Port — the MOU was due before the Port Commission on May 14 — and suggested the Port present to the Fire Commission on May 22 so commissioners could review alignment.
Deputy Chief Victor Wersch summarized operations: seven working fires in April were held to single alarms, some notable rescues and an arson‑related flooding incident that required a multiagency response and an arrest. Wersch also described EMS6 referrals and outreach that reduced repeat callers and connected individuals to shelter or services.
Commissioners praised the department’s outreach, promotions and training programs, including wildland deployment preparation and ongoing Vision Zero coordination with MTA. Chief Nicholson and Wersch emphasized interagency drills and the Healthy Streets Operations Center as part of a more integrated response to street homelessness and opioid-related calls.
Separately, the commission and city participated in a public ribbon‑cutting for the new Station 5, a seismic‑resilient facility funded in part by earlier earthquake safety and emergency response bonds. Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru credited in‑house city teams and Alton Construction for delivering the project on budget. Mayor London Breed used the event to outline recent station openings and to propose a 2020 bond measure to continue seismic upgrades to public‑safety facilities.
The commission expressed interest in updates on peer support unit work and suggested the department review PPE procurement after a presentation alleging chemical exposure risks in some gear. Chief Nicholson agreed to coordinate follow‑up briefings.
