What does the Manteca Fire Department Do? - City of Manteca

Who Manages The Manteca Fire Department?
The City of Manteca is governed by the Council/Manager form of government. The five members of
the City Council and the City Manager represent the citizens of Manteca in the all matters and issues as
they relate to our local government and the services that it provides. One of those services is fire
protection and rescue. The Department Head for the Fire Department is George M. Quaresma, the Fire
Chief. He is charged with the effective and efficient operation of the department. Chief Quaresma has
four Division Chiefs that are part of his management team and who are responsible for the various
functions of the organization.
The Fire Department changed its focus about who we serve and how we see ourselves several years
ago. We realized that we don't just serve taxpayers, since not everybody pays taxes. We realized that we
don't just serve citizens, since some are not. We have come to understand that we serve our customers
and have changed our perception to include all of the people that live in, work in, or travel through our
City. Our customer oriented services are best observed in the time and effort that we take to restore and
salvage a building after a fire. We take great pride in our salvage efforts and treat the building and its
contents as though they belong to one of our best friends and are trying to get him/her back on their feet.
Few people understand the grief and hardship that one experiences after a fire, better than we do.
A Recipe For Disaster!
Manteca is known as the "Cross roads of California" and as such has an inordinate amount of
transportation through and around it. This is convenient but also lends itself to frequent transportation
related emergencies. The proximity to Highways 99, 120, and 5 have caused the Fire Department to
respond to several large accidents, fires and spills. During the "fog" season many Mantecan’s can
remember the vehicle accidents and injuries on the highways, some of which have totaled more than 100
damaged cars in a single incident. We also have the Union Pacific Railroad tracks bisecting the City and
the freight trains can be seen traveling though town about every 30 minutes. In February of 1989, we
responded to a 58 car train that derailed in the heart of Manteca. Many of the cars were off the track, but
there were no injuries. Other potential transportation related incidents include the proximity to, and in
the flight path of, several large nearby airports.
A common misconception that many Mantecan's have is the belief that there is not a fire problem in
their City and that "big" fires do not tend to happen here. Listed below are some interesting fire facts that
will serve to put the fire problem in Manteca in perspective. The fact is that for the past 10 years, the City
of Manteca has lost over three quarters of a million dollars per year (average) to the effects of hostile
fires. Better news is that during the same period of time, the death and injury rate for both civilians and
firefighters is well below the national averages. Manteca suffers (5) civilian injuries per year, (.5) civilian
deaths per year, (5.3) firefighter injuries per year, and (0) firefighter deaths per year on average.
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