Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) Chief Brian Fennessy will retire from the agency after the turn of the new year and has tentatively accepted a federal position, according to a memo sent out Friday night and obtained by the Southern California News Group.
Fennessy, who has served as OCFA chief for nearly eight years, said he has tentatively accepted a director role with the newly created United States Wildland Fire Service (USWFS), pending completion of a federal onboarding process.
“Serving alongside you has been the greatest honor of my career,” Fennessy wrote. “Day in and day out, you have exemplified what it means to be an all-hazard, mission-driven organization protecting lives and property with professionalism, compassion, and relentless commitment. The pride I feel in our team’s operational excellence, innovation, and community partnership is immeasurable.
“Over the past eight years, we have earned a reputation as a national model within the fire service, and I recognize that being selected as the inaugural leader of the USWFS is a direct reflection of our collective success at the OCFA.”
Fennessy’s retirement from OCFA will be effective on January 2. He has held the position of chief since April 2018.
### Career Background
Fennessy began his career in 1978 with the Agriculture Department’s U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management as a hotshot crewmember. He advanced to crew superintendent before joining the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department in 1990. He later served as chief of that department starting in 2015.
### Transition Plans and Future Role
A replacement fire chief has not yet been announced, but Fennessy said he would “work closely with Executive Management and our Board of Directors to support a smooth leadership transition.”
Regarding his move to the federal role, Fennessy stated it presents an opportunity to “strengthen interagency coordination, modernize capabilities, and elevate the profession of wildland firefighting. I look forward to carrying the lessons learned at the OCFA into that work and ensuring the nation knows that the OCFA and all of you are deeply connected to the values and mission we aim to build at the USWFS.”
### Leadership and Recognition
Fennessy was named one of the Orange County Register’s Most Influential People in 2020 after leading the department through the COVID-19 pandemic while also managing responses to the Bond, Silverado, and Blue Ridge fires, all of which at least partly impacted Orange County.
During the Silverado fire that year, two firefighters whom Fennessy personally selected and was close with were badly burned.
### About OCFA
The Orange County Fire Authority serves nearly 2 million residents across 23 cities, including Santa Ana and Irvine, as well as unincorporated areas in Orange County. The fire authority employs more than 1,200 firefighters operating out of 78 stations throughout the county.
https://www.ocregister.com/2025/12/07/ocfa-chief-to-retire-in-january-tentatively-accepts-federal-agency-director-role/