/ Lompoc is getting a new fire chief in August, and it s the first female chief in the city s history.
First female chief in city s history
A Central Coast community is going to have what may be the first female fire chief in the region. The City of Lompoc has hired Alicia Welch as its new chief.
Welch has been a firefighter for nearly three decades.
She was with the Los Angeles Fire Department for 27 years, starting as a firefighter and rising to become a Battalion Chief. In 2018, she became Fire Chief for the City of Golden, Colorado.
Welch was chosen following a nationwide search, following the retirement of Chief Gerald Kuras. She’ll take over her new post in August.
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By Janene Scully, Noozhawk North County Editor | @JaneneScully
May 12, 2021
| 8:13 p.m.
Eighteen years after giving up an engineering career and getting hired as a firefighter, Todd Tuggle has been chosen to lead the Santa Maria Fire Department.
Todd Tuggle
On Wednesday, City Manager Jason Stilwell announced that he had named Tuggle as fire chief, effective last Saturday.
A badge-pinning ceremony is scheduled during the City Council meeting on Tuesday.
It’s a different career than Tuggle had after graduating from Cal Poly in 1996 with an engineering degree, but he hasn’t looked back.
“I’ve never doubted it for a moment,” he said of the switch. “It’s been the most fulfilling, amazing, challenging (job). It’s never been dull from day one.”