PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE | BRIAN K. RICE
An unprecedented year
The fight to tackle an unseen danger
2020 is a year for the history books, where we will be defined by how we managed and reacted to COVID-19, a disaster that shook the world. The pandemic has brought an abrupt halt to our lives as we know it. This has been a difficult year for all of us and as firefighters you are on the front lines of the response, bringing added pressure to an already stressful job.
We have faced pandemics before and they do pass, but how we weather the storm is determined by our own actions. Our locals across the state have been affected by COVID-19 and many jumped into action when little was known about how to protect ourselves on the job.
San Jose Firefighters Local 230 were the first to be affected when their department faced a massive COVID-19 outbreak. A San Jose firefighter tested positive on February 29th and 90 firefighters were subsequently quarantined. It was later revealed, through retroactive contact tracing, that the exposure occurred on February 6th, when responding to a patient who unknowingly died of COVID-19, making it the first COVID-19 death in the U.S.
Since then, many departments and locals have taken precautions to manage COVID-19 and limit exposures, but some members have still contracted the virus and the long-term effects remain unknown. Anaheim Local 2899 members David Baker and Joe Aldecoa were so sickened by the virus they each spent nearly a month in the ICU, with David in an induced coma for 11 days. We lost our brother Jose M. Perez to COVID-19 in July. He was only 44 years old, leaving behind a wife and three young children.
This virus is taking a toll on our members and with so many unknowns, a workers' compensation presumption is key. Early in the crisis we worked with the Governor’s office to secure an executive order establishing a presumption for COVID-19 exposure. We then successfully passed, SB 1159, a long-term workers’ comp presumption for COVID-19, in the Legislature. The bill now awaits Governor Newsom’s signature and we are working hard to ensure it is signed into law. It’s imperative that our members are protected during this pandemic, so no member has to worry about their paycheck or family if they contract the virus.
COVID-19 has not been the only crisis or emergency our members have responded to, we are an all-risk profession and this year has given us our fair share of serious incidents. From Boyd Street, to the Navy Ship fire and now an early wildfire season, each of you are answering the call.
The Boyd Street Fire in Downtown LA erupted in an unpermitted structure containing improperly stored butane and nitrous oxide. This was a devastating incident that could have easily become a tragedy, as eleven LA City firefighters were severely burned. The owners of the building have been charged with over 300 criminal counts of fire code and safety violations. To prevent these kinds of disasters we will be reevaluating butane legislation to determine next steps at a statewide level.
The Navy Ship Fire in San Diego engulfed the Bonhomme Richard and burned for four days, as our members tried to get a handle on the stubborn inferno. Many firefighters were injured by an explosion on the ship as they were battling the flames. The cause is still under investigation, but arson is now suspected, and we are keeping a close eye on how this unfolds.
Now, wildfire season has arrived early thanks to an unprecedented lighting storm. Over 11,000 lightning strikes sparked hundreds of wildfires, requiring 15,000 of you to respond as Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency. We were already bracing ourselves for a difficult wildfire season and COVID-19 made a bad situation worse, with resources stretched thin.
For the last five years, we’ve been saying this wildfire season is worse than the last. Each of you are spending more time away from your families battling what used to be a once in a career wildfire, regularly. To effectively combat this new normal, and what the Governor himself calls the megafire era, we need more resources and staff. It is not sustainable to continue to overwork firefighters as a response to the growing disaster. That’s why we are fighting at the ballot box this November to get more resources and boots on the ground.
Every election cycle we make recommendations on ballot initiatives and candidates that protect our jobs, health and safety, benefits, and retirement. This year we recommend yes on Propositions 15 and 19 because both will provide new revenue for badly needed resources and staffing. As you go through this newspaper, you’ll learn more about what these propositions do and why it’s important to our profession.
As always CPF’s recommendations are just that - recommendations. I know each of you are unique and complex voters with many priorities. As your union, we are fulfilling an obligation to inform you on which propositions and candidates will affect your job. We hope that this will help in your overall information gathering as you decide how you will vote in November.
This has been a year that none of us will ever forget and together we will come out stronger on the other side, like we always do. CPF will always have your back as you continue to be on the front lines of a historic year.