The contract between Orange County Fire Authority, Southern California Edison and several other local fire departments that provided valuable firefighting helicopters to the area has expired, despite the efforts of the fire chief.
The contract between Orange County Fire Authority, Southern California Edison and several other local fire departments that provided valuable firefighting helicopters to the area has expired, despite the efforts of the fire chief.
The Quick Reaction Force, a partnership between OCFA, SCE and the Los Angeles and Ventura County fire departments, was founded in 2022. It provided three CH-47 Chinook Helitankers and a Sikorsky 76 helicopter to their collective fleet, allowing for vast resources to battle wildfires that break out across Southern California. That partnership expired on Jan. 1, 2026, in what Edison officials and OCFA's Fire Chief Brian Fennessy say was not a mutual decision. 'I am extremely disappointed that the Quick Reaction Force ... ended on January 1, 2026,' Fennessy said in a statement. 'OCFA staff and I made every effort possible to ensure our 2026 QRF agreement with SCE was renewed before the January 1, 2026 deadline.'He said that they provided ample time for OCFA staff to 'ensure the agreement with SCE was consistent with the past four years' QRF agreements' at a November meeting for the department's board of directors. At the time, he says that the board unanimously voted to approve the partnership. A month later, Fennessy said that the board directors were also educated on the 'value in protecting life and property' before a December special meeting. 'Despite those efforts, which included the development of a QRF FAQ document, a QRF video presentation, and several attempts by our Clerk of Authority to schedule an OCFA December Special Meeting to vote on the 2026 QRF agreement, OCFA's Board was unable to reach a quorum to hold the meeting,' Fennessy said. In a California Public Utilities Commission filing Fennessy said that Chinook Helitankers have 200% the capacity of a FIREHAWK, which OCFA employs. He also called the QRF 'the world's first 24/7 nocturnal wildfire aerial task force' and 'the most effective asset in the history of wildland firefighting.'Read more: 'It's a war': California turns to new, high-tech helicopters to battle wildfiresSCE officials shared a similar sentiment when speaking with CBS LA about the agreement's expiration. 'We urged the Orange County Fire Authority to approve the agreement before year-end, providing uninterrupted program continuity starting Jan. 6, 2026 - consistent with the unanimous support received in past years,' SCE's statement said. 'OCFA has opted not to finalize the agreement for 2026.'Despite Orange County's contract coming to an end, SCE officials said that they were still working closely with LACoFD and VCFD to guarantee that the QRF could remain operational. 'The QRF has proven to be a game-changing resource in reducing wildfire risk in Southern California,' SCE's statement said. 'SCE will do everything possible to maintain continuity of this program with our other partners, as safeguarding our communities from catastrophic wildfire is essential.'CBS LA has reached out to the chair and vice chair of OCFA's Board of Directors for comment on the matter, but has not yet heard back.
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