Weekend structure fire access in the Santa Barbara promenade gets real emergency test after many drills
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - With a real fire burning, access to a multi-story building in the Santa Barbara downtown promenade was put to the test Sunday morning.
The 911 call came in about 7:25 a.m. on State Street just above Canon Perdido.
Crews encountered heavy smoke from what appeared to be the roof, according to Santa Barbara City Battalion Chief, Cory Cloud.
The business was the Chase restaurant. The smoke could be seen from a distance and many residents blocks away were concerned.
The ladder truck was set up at the front of the building and extended up and over to the roof.
Other engines were at the back and firefighters went up on individual ladders.
They also went through a back door with a forced access entrance. That's where the hose lines were used to stop the fire.
The cause is not known.
At the scene, it was an incident that the fire department had planned for and tested for.
"Fortunately the city has done a good job of keeping the access lanes open for our ladder truck which is really important in times like this as you can see," said Cloud.
The city is discussing other configurations to the downtown promenade or as it may be called in the future, the Grand Paseo.
Along the way, the fire department says it will evaluate if there's enough room for the engines to respond to emergencies and set up.
They will likely be working with multiple engines in the same area, along with ambulance crews, and the police department.
On Sunday, the city fire truck came in on an angle and extended the ladder to the roof of the building.
The street is normally blocked off but the yellow delineators were moved by the fire department to allow for the 57-foot truck to come into the area and get into the right position for firefighting.
The height of a building will be a factor on positioning the truck either closer or a distance away to have an effective flow of water on flames.
Some streets have dining parklets close together or on an angle which is a consideration on access for emergency crews.
Chief Chris Mailes recently spoke the city council about fire access in the context of new designs for the area. He said as proposals come out they will review them and discuss whether or not fire crews can respond appropriately. The access for a 20-lane for equipment is required by law.
Police Chief Kelly Gordon has also spoken out about how police will respond to emergency calls that require extra space and equipment. She has spoken about different scenarios including large scale evacuations from buildings such as the Granada and Balboa that have multiple stories.
In addition to the State Street designs, the city is also looking at multiple proposals for hundreds of more housing units and new hotels both downtown and nearby in the Funk Zone. Combined it could affect resources, staffing and response times.
