✅ Register to attend this webinar on Thursday, Aug. 7, at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET by completing the “Register for this FireRecue1 Webinar” form on this page.
When wildfires swept through the Los Angeles region in January, they tested interagency coordination, mutual-aid agreements and real-time decision-making under extreme operational and public pressure.
In this live panel discussion, Southern California fire chiefs will share insights from the firestorm, exploring the operational, strategic and leadership challenges common to any large-scale fire incident.
The webinar will cover the full life cycle of major emergency response, from pre-incident planning and public messaging, through deployment and resource management, to post-incident issues such as firefighter mental health and other compounding operational hazards. Each panelist will share key takeaways from their agency’s experience to help departments of all sizes strengthen their readiness for complex, low-frequency but high-consequence events.
Don’t miss this opportunity to hear directly from the chiefs who led through the chaos — and what they want every fire officer to know about preparing for large-scale incidents in their own jurisdictions.
Meet the panelists:
Chief Chad Augustin leads the City of Pasadena Fire Department, where he has served since 2021. He previously served as the deputy fire chief of the Sacramento Fire Department, where he worked for more than 20 years in a broad range of areas including operations, administration, human resources, professional standards, training, EMS and fire prevention.
Chief Brian Fennessy leads the Orange County Fire Authority, where he has served since 2018. Chief Fennessy began his career in 1978 with the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management working as a hotshot crewmember, hotshot/helishot/helitack captain and, ultimately, crew superintendent. Fennessy previously served as chief of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department where he established a multi-mission Fire/Rescue/EMS helicopter program. Fennessy has held multiple Incident Command System (ICS) certifications and positions, has also served on National Incident Management Teams, and developed one of the first All-Hazard Incident Management Teams (AHIMT) in the United States.
Chief Robert J. Garcia leads the U.S. Forest Service – Angeles National Forest, where he has served since 2015. Garcia, a 30-year veteran of the Forest Service and a Southern California native, started his career as one of the first graduates of the Angeles National Forest’s Wildland Fire Explorer Academy. He worked on engine and hotshot crews before moving on to serve as superintendent for the Little Tujunga Hotshots, a battalion chief and division chief on the Los Angeles Rivers Ranger District.
Chief Dustin Gardner leads the Ventura County Fire Department, having served in the position since 2022 and with the department since 1999. Prior to serving as fire chief, Gardner served as a deputy chief and, before that, an assistant chief. During his time as assistant chief, Gardner navigated some of the biggest disasters in recent Ventura County history, including the Thomas Fire in 2017, the Borderline shooting in 2018, and the Hill and Woolsey fires, which broke out shortly after the mass shooting.
Chief Tony Marrone leads the Los Angeles County Fire Department, where he has served since 1987, taking the chief role in 2023. During his career, Chief Marrone has supervised and managed the Leadership and Professional Standards Bureau, Special Services Bureau, EMS Bureau, East Regional Operations Bureau, and Central Regional Operations Bureau, in addition to managing special projects and Business Operations. Marrone has also directly managed routine and complex wildland fires and other significant all-risk incidents.
Register to attend this webinar on Thursday, Aug. 7, at 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET by completing the “Register for this FireRecue1 Webinar” form on this page.