A $30 million plan to provide standardized breathing equipment for every fire department in Los Angeles County has been suspended after a lawsuit alleged the contract process was mishandled and firefighters complained about the quality of the equipment. Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment is suing the city and county of Los Angeles, contending the contract process was improperly handled in a manner that ignored firefighter input and unfairly favored the winning bidder, L.N. Curtis and sons.
Allstar Fire Equipment Inc., located on Lower Azusa Road in Arcadia, sells firefighting equipment to fire departments throughout California. Joe Sposato, president of the company, is providing supplies to fight the Williams fire.
Arcadia City Council has authorized the Arcadia Fire Department to spend $184,682 to buy an urban search and rescue truck and $64,408 on 100 ballistic vests for the Arcadia Police Department.
Arcadia Education Foundation awarded $30,000 in mini grants to Arcadia Unified School District teachers. The most popular item asked for was a Google Chrome Book, which are needed on upcoming standardized tests.
Devon Oddone of Sports Chalet, and David Gallagher of REI, managers of local sports retail stores, discuss how increased sales are tied to the cold weather.
Investigators have concluded that the failure of a pump on a fire engine was likely caused by a mechanical and/or design defect. The failure occurred on July 4 at a car accident scene where David Contreras died. Chief Dave Lugo may pursue litigation with manufacturer Kovatch Mobile Fire Apparatus. See related story, Arcadia Weekly, July 11, 2002, p. 8 and Arcadia Weekly, July 18, 2002, p. 1.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James Chalfant has voided a $30 million contract that Los Angeles County awarded to L.N. Curtis and Sons for fire equipment. Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment sued the city and county of Los Angeles, claiming the selection process used to award the contract was improperly handled and the judge agreed. The actual funding for the contract came from the federal Department of Homeland Security. The judge's orders require the county to either restart the bidding process or re-evaluate all the bids properly.
Pasadena Fire Department officials spent more than $320,000 to purchase breathing apparatus from distributor L.N. Curtis and Sons, which is at the center of a lawsuit filed by rival equipment company, Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment against the city and county of Los Angeles. 57 self contained breathing apparatus remain unused at Pasadena Fire Station 34 pending a judge's ruling next month.
A photograph with caption only shows a new MRI machine being lowered into a hole cut into the helicopter landing pad atop the Arcadia Methodist Hospital. The machine weighs 11,430 pounds.
Registered nurse Shawn Douthit, of Cerner Corp., promotes the "Smart Semi," a mobile caregiver station that travels across the country and is making a stop at Arcadia Methodist Hospital. This new technology integrates different systems and devices, including electronics, IV pumps, monitors, into the electronic medical record. Kara Marx, the hospital's chief information officer, already has plans to install a system similar to Cerner's by August.
View of audiovisual area of library at 20 W. Duarte Road. Pictured behind desk is Hazel Bolton. One patron is listening to record on record player. White file cabinets along wall on left side of photo.