Fire chief adds another duty to his list

Deepa Bharath

COSTA MESA -- Fire Chief Jim Ellis will be wearing a new hat in 2004.

The chief has been selected as the president of the Orange County

Fire Chiefs Assn. and will assume that post later this month.

Ellis, who was named Costa Mesa’s fire chief in March 2001, said

he considers it a “tremendous honor.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “It would mean representing

Orange County, and I’m very excited about it.”

Ellis’ most significant accomplishments this year have been

putting together a mobile Fire Prevention Education Trailer and

establishing a Citizen Corps Council to disseminate disaster

preparedness information in the community.

Newport Beach Fire Chief Tim Riley, who was president about eight

years ago, said Ellis is perfect for the job.

“Jim has seniority,” Riley said. “He has a lot of energy and love

for what he does. So he’ll tackle the job with a lot of heart.”

Fire departments are going through changes, he said.

“There’s turnover, and senior people are retiring,” Riley said.

“It’s a great thing for the Fire Chiefs Assn. to have someone of

Jim’s stature serve as the president in a time like this.”

The role of the president is to “provide leadership” for the

organization and to address issues that are common to most or all

county fire departments, Riley said.

“The president is the county’s representative, especially on

issues that are of a common interest,” he said.

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.