Loma Mar Fire - Company 55

This year Loma Mar Volunteer Fire Department (LMVFD) is celebrating 50 years of service to our coastside communities! For half a century our non-profit organization has provided emergency medical services, fire suppression, disaster response, and rescue operations to the unincorporated communities of San Mateo County's South Coast. Our crew is 100% volunteer and dedicated to public safety!

In this past year we provided emergency supplies and support during floods and power outages, responded to scores of medical emergencies and traffic accidents, and prevented little fires from turning into big fires. You're welcome!

LMVFD is dispatched to all 911 emergencies within our response area as an integral part of the county's emergency response system. We exist as a unique entity within the county and operate in tandem with the paid crews of CalFire and metropolitan departments. Why do we need volunteer firefighters too? In rural communities like ours, response times can exceed safe standards, and sparse staffing of paid crews can be insufficient during major incidents. Additionally, our local knowledge of the geography, obscure roads, and accessibility challenges facilitates a more effective response to emergencies. We also ensure emergency services are readily available to local residents who would otherwise be unreachable when roads are closed from down trees, power lines, and mudslides.

Despite being a small, volunteer station in a rural community many have never heard of, our services have a much wider impact and benefit to everyone living in or visiting the Bay Area. As a scenic tourist destination, thousands of visitors from around the Bay Area, country, and world come to enjoy our community. We are here to serve them too. Additionally, each time the paid crews and LMVFD are dispatched to an emergency, the county is required to shift resources from Half Moon Bay to Pescadero, and from El Granada or San Mateo to Half Moon Bay. This chain reaction ensures that we are prepared for a second emergency that may occur simultaneously, but it takes resources away from these other more populated areas. Our participation has a meaningful impact on reducing the occurrence of this shift, and its duration, thus improving emergency resource allocation far beyond our small community.

We are an independent non-profit that depends 100% on donations to maintain our operating budget and supplement our equipment, training, and supplies not provided by the county. With your support today Loma Mar Fire will continue to provide fire protection, medical care, and rescue services for many more years to come. Here's to another 50 years!