A firefighter with nearly three decades experience has been named interim fire chief for a South Coast city.
Darwin Base will take over as head of the Oxnard Fire Department July 30th. Base has been with the department for 28 years, and has been Assistant Fire Chief since November of 2015.
Fire Chief Bryan Bryce announced his resignation last month, with the last day scheduled to be Friday. He had been with the department for less than a year, and cited personal reasons for his departure. He has accepted a job as fire chief in the Washington State city of Mount Vernon.
It’s been a turbulent few years for the Oxnard department, with the firefighters union and the city at odds over issues like staffing levels.