Battalion Chief Rick Stubstad of the Stockton Fire Department hands a teddy bear to a toddler named Haley Friday afternoon in Stockton. Regularly, the scenes I find myself at see people at the lowest points in their lives. It’s not uncommon to hear a report of a shooting on the police scanner and arrive on scene [...]
36 Stockton firefighters were laid off Friday, some of them having finished their final shift that same day, at 8 a.m. The layoffs were by seniority; last in, first out. 36 is enough to gouge from an academy class that graduated in 2005, meaning some of those sent packing on Friday had been working here [...]
David Rudat, the new interim chief of the Stockton Fire Department, has a pretty detailed website. Rudat has extensive fire experience. According to his bio, he was the first firefighter younger than 21 hired by the city of Orange. He made chief in 1993 and two years later was running the city. Orange has about [...]
In a letter to the editor published last week, a reader complained the Fire Department is inflating its workload with dodgy counting. “Their call record is another hoax. One car accident, five firefighters show up, and it’s counted as five calls to service. When you see 90 calls for service for a car accident, you [...]
Talking to Mike Fitzgerald, Deputy Fire Chief Paul Willette defended the Willow Creek Association’s Global Leadership Summit as a leadership conference, not solely a Christian event, and a legitimate function to attend on-duty. Willette was there with Hittle and two other firefighters. Some of the speakers were secular leaders: Daniel Pink, Jim Collins, Jack Welch. [...]
City Manager Bob Deis said last week that Fire Chief Ron Hittle and other members of the Fire Department’s leadership are under investigation for their on-the-clock attendance in August of the Global Leadership Summit by the Willow Creek Association,” a not-for-profit organization that exists to maximize the life-transformation effectiveness of local churches.” In August. Assuming [...]
During a discussion of proposed cuts to the Stockton Fire Department, Capt. Dave Macedo referred to a similar situation in San Jose, where firefighters have offered a package of concessions equivalent to about 10 percent of total compensation. And like the San Jose Fire Department, Stockton’s is planning to cut staffing on engines and trucks. [...]
The Fire Department has so far deferred questions about proposed cuts to its operations to the City Manager’s Office. At this point, the city has only said the cuts amount to about $18.5 million, a little under 40-percent of the Fire Department’s budget. Sources at the Fire Department say the plan is to lay off [...]
The first apparatus to reach a duplex fire on Montgomery Avenue Thursday morning was carrying a lone firefighter — its driver. Firefighter Kevin Crosby was returning Engine 10 from maintenance when he heard the call. He was on Interstate 5, headed north, and realized he was closer than any other engine. When he arrived he [...]
Maya Paratore was the fifth homicide victim in Stockton this year. (The sixth countywide.) The Police Department has said she is believed to have been killed by her fiancé, Joseph Giacovoni, who then killed himself. The two were found dead Feb. 17 in the home they shared in the 3700 block of Fort Donelson Drive. [...]
