The Associated Press
via San Luis Obispo Tribune
By ABRAHAM HYATT
The San Luis Obispo Tribune (California)
Dan Turner’s career as a firefighter encompasses three decades of the state and county’s most dramatic earthquakes and fires: Loma Prieta, Oakland, San Simeon, Highway 41.
But as the CDF/County Fire chief enters retirement this month, it’s the everyday, behind-the-scenes work he remembers most fondly.
“It’s pretty interesting when you go back and recollect, what sticks in your mind,” he said.
One memory that stuck was the 1976 bombing of Hearst Castle, when Turner was a recent Cal Poly graduate and working out of the San Luis Obispo Airport Fire Station.
Turner’s station responded to the call.
But he said the lack of assistance from other stations was so troubling that he began working with other firefighters throughout the state on what’s called the Incident Command System -- a system that standardized how agencies communicated and managed services in an emergency.
The system developed by California firefighters in the 1980s eventually became the Incident Command System now used by local, state and federal agencies throughout the nation.
“It was pretty phenomenal to be involved with that from the grass roots,” he said.
After a 12-year stint in Santa Cruz, Turner returned to San Luis Obispo in 1997 and was promoted to chief about six months later. He oversaw 18 fire stations, three conservation camps and the Paso Robles Air Attack Base.
He also served as the president of the county Fire Chiefs Association and represented the Central Coast on the board of the California Fire Chiefs Association.
Terry Fibich, fire chief for Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach, and Paso Robles Fire Chief Ken Johnson applauded Turner for what he accomplished on the administrative side of his job over the past eight years: breaking down barriers between agencies and getting people to work together.
CDF/County Fire Capt. Steve Mello has known Turner since the late 1970s when Mello was an engineer and Turner was a chief. Mello remembers Turner as a boss who took care of his staff, and made sure they got good training.
“He was a good fire boss,” Mello said. “He was a fun guy; we had a lot of laughs.”
Turner said he and his wife will remain in San Luis Obispo.
“Will I miss the emergencies? I’ll miss that,” he said. “I’ve been on call 24/7 for 30 years. My blood pressure will drop a couple notches.
“But I’m a fire horse,” he continued. “I’ll always pay attention when the call goes out.”
Deputy Chief Matt Jenkins will serve as acting CDF/County Fire chief until a permanent successor is named.