HomeMy WebLinkAboutFire Commission 2020-11-12 Minutes
CITY OF SAN RAFAEL
FIRE DEPARTMENT FIRE COMMISSION MEETING
Minutes of the Regular Meeting
November 12, 2020
Meeting via Zoom
The meeting was called to order at 4:02p.m. by Chair Mizroch.
Present: Chair Stephen Mizroch, Vice Chair Larry Luckham, Eli Hill, Thomas Weathers, David Fonkalsrud,
and Stan Burford.
Absent: Nadine Hade
Staff: Chief Darin White
1. Approval of Minutes: M/S Luckham/Burford moved to approve the minutes from the October 14,
2020 Fire Commission meeting.
• Chair Mizroch: Aye
• Vice Chair Luckham: Aye
• Commissioner Weathers: Aye
• Commissioner Hill: Aye
• Commissioner Fonkalsrud: Aye
• Commissioner Burford: Aye
2. Open Time for Public Expression: None.
3. Fire Foundation Report. $40,297: Chair Mizroch provided an update on the value of the donation
made by Donna McCusker. Jeff Kramer will match Donna’s donation and any donations made this
season. M/S Luckham/Fonkalsrud to issue a letter of commendation to Leonard Thompson for his
efforts in the creation of the Fire Foundation.
• Chair Mizroch: Aye
• Vice Chair Luckham: Aye
• Commissioner Weathers: Aye
• Commissioner Hill: Aye
• Commissioner Fonkalsrud: Aye
• Commissioner Burford: Aye
4. Historic Subcommittee: Chief White provided comments on the development of the updated San
Rafael Fire Department emblem.
5. Commissioner Reports: The commissioners provided their reports.
• Chair Mizroch: Offered time to support safety review by leveraging experience using root cause
analysis and heuristics.
• Vice Chair Luckham: Provided report on effectiveness of robot employed by Los Angeles Fire
Department (https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-10-13/los-angeles-fire-
departments-robot-goes-where-firefighters-cant).
• Commissioner Weathers: Offered congratulations on the award for Station 57. Provided
comment of the San Francisco Fire Department fatality in a training accident; prompted Chief
White to provide comments on San Rafael Fire Department approach to safety in training
scenarios.
• Commissioner Hill: Shared observation on election transition in San Rafael; prompted discussion
on the Fire Commission meeting the new Council.
• Commissioner Fonkalsrud: Offered to leverage social media to promote fire safety during
holiday season (as done previously) and further, to provide reminders to the public to allow first
responders priority on the road.
• Commissioner Burford: Prompted Chief White to comment on the approach to COVID-19 testing
and vaccination for the San Rafael Fire Department; Chief White commented and the
Commission discussed the topic at length.
6. Fire Chief’s Report: Chief White provided verbal report spanning several topics, including:
• Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA)
o Northern California Council for The Community (NCCC) crews (17 personnel) were
deployed 10/29 and will perform vegetation management focusing on open spaces and
create defensible space for homeowners. Community members should use the
following URL to access Wildfire Prevention Direct Assistance resources:
▪ https://www.cityofsanrafael.org/wildfire-prevention-assistance
o On November 3, MWPA Executive Director Mark Brown hosted a trip to Santa Rosa to
share lessons on defensible space.
• COVID-19
o Provided comments on Marin County “Orange Tier” designation and emphasized
criticality of adhering to mask wearing, social distancing, and hand washing.
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
o San Rafael Fire Department has received 230 NOAA radios, which provide a redundant
mechanism to receive emergency information in the event of primary communications
failure during an emergency; to be distributed to designated community members.
• Election Preparedness
o During election, the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated for potential civil
unrest.
• Discussion
o Chief White provided comments on MWPA funding.
Adjournment: The Fire Commission meeting was adjourned at 5:12 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled
for Wednesday, December 9, 2020.
Submitted,
Eli Hill, Fire Commission