Candidate for
Director; Moraga-Orinda Fire Protection District; Division 5

As a physician, I have long been concerned with health and safety issues, and I have served in many volunteer community activities related to these important issues.

As a Director of the Moraga-Orinda Fire District, I am committed to maintaining and improving the safety of our community through intelligent, cost-effective management policies. I represent you, the residents of our district, and I do not accept campaign contributions from any special interest group.

We must maintain a team of highly trained and well-equipped firefighters and paramedics who are prepared to respond quickly to any fire call and to offer advanced life support in medical emergencies.

Medical emergencies constitute about 70% of MOFD's calls, so well-trained paramedics and modern, strategically stationed ambulances are of vital importance in our fire district. Since this district was formed, we have been able to place paramedics on every ambulance and every fire engine, acquire modern medical equipment, and most recently, assign a full-time ambulance crew to the downtown Orinda fire station.

Other problems remain to be solved. Orinda's heavy fuel load must be reduced and controlled through a continuing program of diligent vegetation management. Many of Orinda's narrow, winding roads need improvement in order to provide better access for emergency vehicles and safe evacuation routes in case we ever need them.

Since 1996, it has become clear that many of Orinda's fire hydrants cannot deliver enough water to extinguish a typical residential fire. Three recent bond measures to finance pipeline improvements failed to achieve the 2/3 voter approval necessary for passage, and fire flow capacity in parts of Orinda remains inadequate. We must look for other ways to improve the water supply and provide alternative means of fire protection, e.g., sprinkler systems in new housing.

Our fire district faces many other challenges that will require attention in the near future: Seismic upgrades will be required at two stations in order to assure that our personnel and equipment are safe and available in the event of the "Big One." We need to cover our contractual obligations to active personnel and retirees for health care and pensions in the face of increasing costs and static revenues. These issues will require careful management and hard decisions, so that we can continue to provide the necessary services within a balanced budget.