STATION 226
FORT DEL ROSA has become the moniker of San
Bernardino County Fire Station 226. This name was
affectionally coined by late firefighter Jason Lange,
who was stationed there in the early 2000s.
Often one of—if not the busiest—stations in San Bernardino,
crews there would sometimes respond to 25-30 calls in a
shift. Returning to quarters after some of these runs, Lange
thought of the name when reminded of his time in the
military, and how he would feel safer after returning to base.
Located on Del Rosa Avenue just south of Highland Avenue, the station serves the
center-ish/northern section of San Bernardino, and has a similar design to many of
the other stations in the city. This familiar building profile came about in the 1970s,
when then-mayor Bob Holcomb had a vision for the delivery of fire services to his
citizens. He proposed having new stations be modular in design, with the ability to
be moved response to the city’s growth and changes. Unfortunately, implementation
of this vision never came to fruition. In fact, the general contractor at the time would
joke with the crews, pleading with them to “call him if the city ever attempted the
move,” believing the idea would never actually work. Each of those modular stations
sits where it was originally built.
Station 226 has a large response area, including a section north of the California 210
freeway consisting mainly of homes built in the 1950s and ‘60s which housed many
of those working at the then-active Norton Air Force base. Additionally, as industry in
the Inland Empire began to increase and provide more manufacturing jobs, this area
provided homes for a growing workforce. Things changed in the early 1990s when
three of the larger employers left the area. The first major blow was in 1992 when
Santa Fe Railroad moved its main locomotive maintenance shop to Topeka, Kansas.
Then came the closure of the Kaiser Steel plant in Fontana. The final blow was when
Norton Air Force base was decommissioned in 1994. Meanwhile, over the years the
call volume for Station 226 has increased—along with many other areas within the
county. A large influx of calls began once then-San Bernardino City Fire Chief Larry
Pitzer made an agreement with County Fire to respond with city resources to the
multiple county-governed pockets within the city limits. This increase proved taxing
on the crews of 226, and a solution was needed. Spurred by the members of IAFF
Local 981, and after years of working with the city, a paramedic squad was added
to the station in the mid-2000s. This squad at least reduced the load on the engine
crews and remains to this day an integral part of the station’s ability to meet the
demands of the citizens.
Current staffing for Station 226 features the standard County Fire captain/engineer/
firefighter-paramedic model, all aboard a 2008 Pierce PUC Type-1 engine, plus a fire-
fighter-paramedic and firefighter-EMT staffing a 2017 Ford F-450 paramedic squad.
The squad members also cross-staff a 2004 GMC/KME C8500 water tender. However,
staffing levels of course have changed over the years. From 1992-1998, for example,
Station 226 housed one of only five advanced life support (ALS)-capable engines in
the city, staffed with two paramedics. The ALS engines would respond with nearby
basic life support (BLS) engines to provide paramedic services to citizens. This
By Rich Huntling
changed in 1998 when the city changed its EMS delivery services to an all-ALS engine
model and moved the second paramedic onto BLS engines. With the strong economy
of 2003-2008, the city added a fourth professional firefighter to each engine
company; however, the post-2008 recession ended that model. Through attrition
the fourth firefighter on the engines was phased out, along with the removal of the
paramedic squad. Staffing only came back to what it is today once the economy
began recovering, and was continued upon the County Fire transition in 2016.
Along with a large area of wildland-urban interface terrain, Station 226 has some
unique target hazards. Perris Hill, which the back of the station abuts, proves to be
a dubious landmark and over the summer will burn multiple times, straining crews
and surrounding resources. In addition, multiple large garden-style apartments are
present in the district, such as 1700 East Date Street and the Mountain View Apart-
ments. These two complexes will at some point perhaps put the new County Fire
deep-stretch operation to the test; in fact, the evolution was recently utilized by
Station 226 crews at a complex south of Perris Hill to great success.
For historic incidents in 226’s district, few are more significant than October 21,
2003, which proved a challenging day for Station 226. That was the day the Old Fire
started on the north end of the response area and quickly burned into the homes
of the district. With strong Santa Ana winds, difficult terrain and lack of resources,
hundreds of homes within the area were destroyed. Crews valiantly fought this
massive firestorm for weeks.
For years there was a local citizen that crews of 226 would always enjoy interacting
with. “Sarge,” as he was known, was a local fire buff and would visit the stations of
the city on a daily basis. No matter how strained or tired crews were, Sarge could
always brighten up their day. Seeing his enthusiasm and love of the members of the
department could put a smile on anyone’s face. Sarge was so adept at navigating the
city he would often beat crews to calls! Sarge passed away two years ago, and crews
held a memorial service at his home, sharing stories of his love for the fire service.
Station 226 has been an important station for firefighters of the county to gain
valuable experience for their careers. It’s clear that those who work here love the
station as they show their dedication to the community on a daily basis.
Firefighter/Paramedic Richard Huntling is FIREWIRE’s go-to reporter for station profiles.
We appreciate his input and the research he does on these stories. You can catch Rich at
his normal shift, Fontana Station 78 on A-shift.
FALL 2019 • FIREWIRE 25