Fire Chief's Message

Fire Chief

David Witt

"To enhance the quality of life in Kern County
by protecting and serving our citizens."

We are currently developing a Strategic Plan, in order to both describe existing services and to guide the growth of the department as the County continues to grow. We have started with our own vision and mission statements that are being rewritten to follow the pattern established by the Board of Supervisors' Strategic Plan:

Fire & Emergency Services Vision Statement:

"To provide outstanding customer-centered Fire and Emergency Services"

Our core values are Leadership, Integrity and Service; intended to provide:

Professional Excellence through:

Public and Firefighter safety
Incident effectiveness
Innovation and continuous improvement
Transparency and accountability
Communications and teamwork

Customer Service Excellence through:

Community education and preparedness
Compassionate response while exceeding expectations
Respectful, dignified and courteous treatment for all
Involvement in our communities

Fire & Emergency Services Mission Statement:

"To proudly serve our communities by protecting life, property and the environment through effective education, prevention, preparedness and emergency response."

We are committed to providing the highest quality fire protection, emergency medical, and technical rescue services available to the 515,000 plus residents we protect; and quality disaster preparedness, response, protection, mitigation, and recovery services to the entire Operational Area, including all of the political jurisdictions within it.