RE: 'Fire tax not needed' [Letter, Village News, 10/30/08]

Fire Chief Mike Manchor from the De Luz Fire Department is at it again. He is saying again that the Prop. A fire tax is not needed by San Diego County.

He feels that since no homes were lost at the Juliet fire on Camp Pendleton that the fire protection system in San Diego County is in good shape. This is a non-sequitur.

Virtually every fire professional recognizes that the fire protection system in the county is understaffed, under-resourced and under-funded.

The Juliet fire was well handled and the county has taken a few steps toward improving the system. Those improvements include setting a timeline for creating a county fire agency in parts of the county and contracting for the super scoopers.

This is a long way from having the type of system that will insure a maximum level of fire safety for the majority in the county.

In his Guest Editorial in this newspaper a few weeks ago, Mr. Manchor said that volunteer fire departments would not get a share of the funds generated by Prop A. He is flat wrong about that. He also has no clue as to how the Los Angeles County Fire Department or the Los Angeles City Fire Department operates.

Mike Reardon

Captain, LA County Fire