BRIEFS

The Residential Fire Safety Institute, a public interest group

dedicated to lowering the number of deaths caused by fires, has honored

the Huntington Beach Fire Department with a Life Safety Achievement Award

for 1999.

This is the fifth consecutive year the city’s Fire Department has

received the award in honor of its efforts in fire suppression and

prevention of residential fires.

While only 20% of all fires occur in the home, they cause 80% of all

fire deaths, officials said.

The city’s department was recognized for both its firefighting, as

well as educational programming to inform residents on how to

significantly reduce the loss of lives and property in a fire, officials

said.

City, police seek input on substation

Huntington Beach police and city officials want to hear from residents

about plans to establish a substation of the Huntington Beach Police

Department in the southeastern section of the city.

There are two police substations in Huntington Beach already -- one

Downtown and another in the Oak View area, police said.

Police spokeswoman Sgt. Janet Perez said residents in the southeast

Huntington Beach requested the substation.

“We’re looking for a storefront-type area in a strip mall, with about

1,000 square feet or so,” she said.

Substations serve as information centers where residents can learn

more about the city’s police force and also as a place for officers to

write reports.

Substations increase officer presence in the city because they can

write their reports from the patrol area, Perez added.