El Cerrito Fire Station Closes

After months of speculation, El Cerrito Fire Station #15 is closing, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department officials have announced.

The county and the City of Corona have entered into an agreement to pass rescue, emergency medical services and public service assists in the unincorporated community of El Cerrito to Corona. CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department will still jointly respond for fire protection.

The station, which lies close to Lake Elsinore on Temescal Canyon Road, is located less than 2 miles from the City of Corona’s fire station at 3777 Bedford Canyon.

Firefighters from Station #15 were called out to last month's that burned just west of the Trilogy Retirement Community near Temescal Canyon Road. The blaze ultimately charred 160 acres in the Cleveland National Forest.

“Closing the El Cerrito Fire Station #15 and entering into a contractual agreement with the City of Corona will avoid an overlap of services and create great cost efficiencies for both communities,” according to a Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department news release.

 “The City of Corona operates a municipal fire department and provides all of the emergency services currently provided by the Riverside County Fire Department in El Cerrito including advanced life support, or paramedic service. We do not feel contracting services to the City of Corona will significantly impact the level of service the residents of El Cerrito have come to expect and deserve,” said CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department Chief John Hawkins.

The agreement is one result of cost cutting measures designed to close a $9.9 million dollar budget gap faced by the Riverside County Fire Department.

The transition is set to take place effective July 5, and the agreement is valid through the end of the Riverside County fiscal year June 30, 2012. The agreement will be evaluated annually.

Continue to call 9-1-1 for all emergency services.