All Oakland Fire Stations Open Ahead of Wildfire Season for First Time in Decades

For the first time in years, all 25 of Oakland’s fire stations will remain open at the same time as the city prepares for heightened wildfire risk, city leaders announced Friday.

The move, which went into effect Sunday, includes the reopening of two stations in the fire-prone hills that have been closed since January. A station in the Grand Lake area that was taken offline for renovations in 2022 but remained closed due to the city’s ongoing budget woes will also reopen.

The reopenings are being funded by the Alameda Coliseum Joint Powers Authority, which brought in $2.5 million for the city this year, interim Mayor Kevin Jenkins said.

“This is the first time in over two decades that we’ve had all of our firehouses open at once,” Oakland Fire Chief Damon Covington said at a press conference outside Station 25 in the Oakland Hills. “So this really is a monumental and historic day. For the first time, going into wildland season, we have our full complement of engines and trucks and firefighters that are ready to respond to whatever call comes through the 911 center.”

The announcement marks a sharp reversal from what was included in a two-year budget that Jenkins presented earlier this month, which proposed extending millions of dollars in public safety service cuts to close the city’s projected $260 million deficit. The plan would have reopened the two hills fire stations, but identified two other stations to close.

At the time, Seth Olyer, the president of Oakland firefighter union, expressed frustration, especially after voters overwhelmingly approved a new sales tax in April. Not having all the stations fully operational, he said, created serious safety concerns and compromised response times.

“The idea that Measure A was going to reopen and keep these firehouses open is exactly how I personally helped pass this measure,” he said. “Oaklanders deserve fully staffed open fire houses all around the city, and it doesn’t look like that’s what the city is proposing right now.”

At Friday’s press conference, Olyer struck a decidedly different tone.

“This is kind of how we get the job done from the labor side,” he said. “It’s constant pressure for what is right. And what is right are all of our fire stations open, all of our fire engines fully staffed and Oakland firefighters taken care of so they can do what they took a sworn oath to do, which is to serve the citizens of Oakland every day.”

“I’m just incredibly proud and ready to get to work Sunday morning,” he added.

Councilmember Janani Ramachandran, who represents District 4 in the hills near regional parks where fire risk is high, said the fire stations serve as a critical frontline defense against wildfires.

“The opening of these fire stations is not just for the benefit of these hills residents in our district,” she said. “The effects go throughout the city for a variety of communities, for a variety of resources.”

KQED’s Katie DeBenedetti contributed reporting.