Families in Dulzura have now been waiting 87 days for Cal Fire Station 30 to reopen. It shut down in February without warning, outside of a flyer posted to its fence and front door.
It’s unclear how much longer that closure will last after a new problem emerged during repairs to its water system. In the meantime, those families are afraid that help won’t arrive fast enough when the next emergency strikes.
Stream San Diego News for free, 24/7, wherever you are with NBC 7.
WATCH HEREAbout two weeks ago, a Cal Fire spokesperson told NBC 7 it expected to finish repairs to its water system and reopen the Dulzura station by mid-May. That didn’t happen.
Not only is there no definitive reopen date, NBC 7 Investigates can now confirm that Cal Fire knew the station was in disrepair for nearly a year, and during that time, even more of the station’s plumbing began to fail.
Get top local San Diego stories delivered to you every morning with our News Headlines newsletter.
SIGN UP A Cal Fire spokesperson said no one with the state agency was available for an on-camera interview but provided information via emails.
Station 30’s water infrastructure problems started almost a year ago
Cal Fire said the water system at its Dulzura station started breaking down in June 2024. The first to go was the well pump, which provides water for drinking, showers and toilets. The station’s steel water holding tank ruptured a month later.
Investigations
The agency said it tried to quickly bring in contractors to make repairs but could only get one company to initially agree to do the repair work. Per state rules, it needed at least two.
Cal Fire said some vendors said the station was too remote. Others refused to give price quotes without being paid for their time or simply stopped responding.
Cal Fire told NBC 7 Investigates that other quotes it received came in over $10,000. State rules dictate that jobs over that amount must go through a solicitation of bids from contractors.
It wasn’t until mid-February of this year that the state began soliciting bids. That process didn’t finish until March. During that time, the station's water filtration and pressure system failed, according to Cal Fire, which required a separate emergency contract to be approved.
Cal Fire said those repairs were finished on May 1, but a water-supply pipe broke when the well pump was turned on. Cal Fire said workers are now trying to figure out where the break is and how to fix it.
If they can find the leak soon, Cal Fire estimates, they could get the station reopened before the end of May.
Cal Fire provided data that shows the price tag for the repair work has surpassed $108,000. It remains to be seen how much higher that will get after all the work is done.
The data also shows it spent more than $25,000 on water deliveries that kept the station open from August 2024 through February. That amounted to more than 100,000 gallons.
Delays in emergency response
NBC 7 Investigates first reported the closure after a fire destroyed a home less than three miles away from the station. Fire officials said crews had to drive from much further away that morning.
It took the first fire engine 17 minutes to arrive, much longer than Cal Fire’s standard of 12 minutes for a rural area like Dulzura. Gary Lane escaped the fire that morning and rescued his wife, his disabled adult son and three of their dogs. Two other dogs didn’t make it, including a puppy.
“I see the house just burning away, and I’m wondering, ‘When is someone gonna get there?’ Seemed like forever,” Lane said. “I just kept waiting and waiting and waiting.”
A Cal Fire spokesperson told NBC 7 Investigates that in hindsight, officials should have done more to warn the community about the closed station.
“You cannot shut a fire station down," Lane said. "Ever. I don't care about our house — it’s already, it’s done, right? But what about everyone else’s house? What if it was a situation where it was a whole family and they’re trapped? You’re gonna wait 20 minutes? They’re not going to get saved in that time.”
