The Hollister Fire Department released response times from Monday’s house fire in San Juan Bautista, where some residents questioned how long it took for responders to reach the scene.
There were four fires in the San Juan Bautista area Monday afternoon, including a blaze that destroyed a home on Franklin Circle.
The dispatch call came in at 2:42 p.m. and reached local fire stations at 2:44 p.m., Hollister Interim Fire Chief Bill Garringer told the Free Lance on Tuesday afternoon.
San Juan Bautista firefighters were on scene by 2:52 p.m., he reported, which made for an eight-minute response time. The interim chief was on scene at 2:58 p.m., he said, which made for a 14-minute response time. Hollister’s Engine 13 was on scene at 2:59 p.m., he said, which created a 15-minute response time. Hollister’s Engine 11 was on scene at 3:06 p.m., he said, and arrived 22 minutes after the initial call.
“I don’t think it was very fair for the person to say it took 20-25 minutes to get there,” said Garringer on Tuesday afternoon, adding that a typical drive to Hollister would be about 12 minutes but traffic caused delays Monday afternoon. “We’re basically trying to get to San Juan Bautista on the shoulder of the road and even with red lights and sirens there’s no way for anyone to get out to the way.”
“In the last two years, our volunteer fire department has met a lot of political issues,” Candelaria said. “In this instance, it took 20 to 25 minutes for someone to respond.”
She said when the volunteer-run San Juan Bautista Fire Department partnered with the Hollister Fire Department, the requirements on local firefighters increased almost as if the roles were paid positions, meaning many locals couldn’t fill that need, she said. An out-of-the-area contract for 911 dispatch services added to local response times, she said.
“When we called 911, we got a busy call the first 10 times,” Candelaria said.
Eight fire department engines responded to the hillside blaze that threatened houses, the interim fire chief said. Calfire managed the other three fires that stretched about 10 to 12 acres along the highway, said Dennis King, the Calfire battalion chief of Monterey.
A mechanical failure in the catalytic converter of a truck traveling on Highway 156 sparked the four fires spanning a mile in the San Juan Bautista area, according to fire department staff members.
