A new fire chief has been named for the City of Santa Maria.
Brad Dandridge has been named the City’s new Fire Chief and a badge pinning ceremony will be held during the Tuesday, July 18th City Council meeting.
Chief Dandridge began his career with the City on January 30th as a Deputy Fire Chief and was named Interim Fire Chief effective February 11th.
He previously served 17 years with the City of Fresno Fire Department as a Battalion Chief. He is a graduate of Santa Maria High School and earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 2000.
Jim Clayton has been appointed as Deputy Fire Chief. Chief Clayton has 30 years of experience with the City beginning as a Reserve Firefighter in 1993 and progressing through the ranks. He is a graduate of St. Joseph’s High School, Allan Hancock College and Cogswell Polytechnical College, and has been serving as Interim Deputy Chief since December 2022.
The Santa Maria Fire Department operates five fire stations serving the entire community, plus a sixth fire station dedicated to the Santa Maria Public Airport. The Department responds to approximately 12,000 service calls annually.
