San Manuel Custom Book

PUBLIC SAFETY tower much in demand by surrounding departments. San Manuel fire fighters are highly trained and meet the same state requirements as all California fire departments. They also must undergo rigorous physical fitness qualifications. Fire personnel work with Public Safety other tribal government departments in devising an overall disaster preparedness plan that includes not only fires, but the potential for catastrophic earthquakes and flooding. The reservation community is on a major fault line. “It’s the quintessential sovereign act, to provide for public safety,” Smith said.“That’s really the cornerstone of why San Manuel would want to have a fire department. The red fire trucks downstairs are demonstrative of San Manuel exercising its sovereignty. That’s the core part of our mission and the omnipresent operational philosophy.” San Manuel has historically relied on police and fire protection from San Bernardino County and nearby municipalities. But with expansion of its gaming operation and other reservation development the tribal government in 1999 hired Smith as a consultant to study means of providing a higher level of medical care to San Manuel citizens and casino employees and patrons. While the tribe was generally pleased with the level of service from its neighboring jurisdictions, response times were below National Fire Protection Association standards: roughly 5 minutes for fire calls and 4 to 6 minutes for paramedic service. There also was no fire station with 1.5 miles of the reserva- ■ Training tower A day at the office Smoke fills the dark room. Flames creep up the walls and across the ceiling. Firefighters in protective gear and breathing apparatus move to quell the blaze. The room is a scorching 1,129 degrees. It may seem like a fire burning out of control, but it’s actually a well-choreographed plan being executed by the San Manuel Fire Department in the burn room of their new fire training tower: a typical day at their office. Located behind the main fire station, the fire tower, introduced into service in February 2007, was conceived and designed by Keith P., Alexander, San Manuel Fire Department operations chief. “It’s great having a tower right behind the station,” Alexander said.“Not a lot of fire departments have daily access to a training tower. Now we don’t have to send our crews off the reservation for training, which would diminish capacity on the reservation in case of an emergency.” Fire Chief Michael Smith is pleased with the tower. Neighboring fire departments have used the tower for their own training. “Firefighting is a dangerous business, with an average of 100 of our brothers and sisters in the fire service killed in the line of duty each year,” Smith said.“This tower helps keep San Manuel firefighters at the peak of their preparedness. The support of the tribe as well as the efforts of Chief Alexander to bring this training facility to fruition ensures that we will continue to safely employ aggressive tactics with a proficiency that only training and experience can guarantee.” The three-story tower offers a variety of features that allow firefighters to train for many situations. The tower’s main room is a replica of a kitchen rigged with equipment to start a propane-based controlled fire and pump in smoke. Firefighters are completely safe at all times in a room that can reach temperatures of up to 1,300 degrees. A crewmember is always standing by, reading to flip a “kill” switch to extinguish the blaze. Outside is a special metal door and window designed for firefighters to practice forcible entries. Power tools send sparks flying. The second floor is equipped with sprinkler heads and is used for confined space training. It can be configured to resemble a small room or a hallway with furniture and other props as obstacles for training in navigating smoke and darkness. The third floor is the “hot roof” with a hatch reaching to ground level utilized to train in rescuing people from wells. The third floor also is fitted with equipment so firefighters can practice repelling between the building and hillside. “It’s all about building confidence and learning tactics and teamwork,” Alexander explained.“Having this fire tower allows us to take a look at current threats on the reservation and build props in the tower to hone our skills and become prepared. Just like an NBA team needs a place to practice their sport, a professional all-risk department needs a place to work on and perfect their craft.” — Gwen Kleist 12

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of San Manuel Custom Book

San Manuel Custom Book Contents Editorial Chapter One: A Tribe with a World View Three Fires Make History with Sacramento Marriott San Manuel Village Nears Completion Giving is the Serrano Way Chapter Two: San Manuel Firefighters Prove Their Mettle A Day at the Office Chapter Three: San Manuel Outreach Cal State University at San Bernardino Operation Phoenix Loma Linda University Medical Center Chapter Four: Building a Tribal Government on San Manuel Behind the Scenes Frances 'Tu Tu' Morongo

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.