Santa Barbara County is moving forward to separate fire and ambulance from law enforcement dispatching services despite opposition from the sheriff and current dispatchers.
The Board of Supervisors, acting in that capacity as well as directors of the County Fire Protection District, unanimously approved several actions that represent what County Fire Chief Mark Hartwig called “a major step” toward creating a Regional Fire Communications Facility.
Hartwig said the discussion for the board Tuesday was “more about cooperation, partnership and regionalization as it is about dispatch.” Essentially, the decisions approved agreements to provide fire dispatch services for Santa Maria, Lompoc, Guadalupe and Santa Barbara fire departments and the Montecito and Carpinteria-Summerland fire protection districts.