Fountain Valley’s hometown Fire Chief dies unexpectedly after decades of service
City officials said in a statement on Saturday, Fountain Valley, his hometown of firefighters Bill McQuaid’in unexpectedly died while he was out of duty, he said.
The city said in a statement, “With a deep sorrow that we share the passage of our Fire Department Chief Bill Mcquaid,” he said. “The chef McQuaid was more than a leader – a mentor, a friend and a stable power pole in our department and community.”
McQuaid survived by his wife Tracy and their daughter Allyson and Julie. He also leaves behind his mother Judy; His sister Tracy and his brother -in -law Keith, her children Ashley, her husband Troy and her son Joshua; His brother Mike and his brother -in -law Stacia.
Fountain Valley Fire Department Chief Bill Mcquaid is seen in an undated photo. (Fountain Valley Fire Brigade)
McQuaid, grown in Fountain Valley, participated in the fire department of the city as a reserve in 1996 before a full-time firefighter-party hired in 1996. profile Published by Los Angeles Times. Later, in January 2023, he played the role of firefighters, Captain, Battalion Chief and Department Operation Chief before he was named as Fire Department.
His career was directed by a promise he made to fire the chef Bernard Heimos about 30 years ago, and told McQuaid Times: If he was given the chance to serve his hometown, he said he would stay during his career.
“If someone was to give me the opportunity to enter me, then I would give them all,” Mcquaid said in his 2023 interview. “Secondly, Fountain Valley is my home, so it was an opportunity to have the opportunity to serve in my own hometown, in my own backyard in my dream career and to commit to the whole of my career.”
McQuaid’s service went well beyond the city boundaries. According to Times, in 2017, he directed strikes for the largest forest fires of California, including Thomas Fire and Dixie Fire in 2021. It also helped coordinate local vaccine areas during Covid-19 pandemia.
More recently, McQuaid has pioneered the efforts to combat the opioid crisis by partnership with local high schools to train personnel on how to respond to overdoses and to distribute Narcan.
McQuaid Times, “large -scale opioid and ongoing negative consequences and negative consequences, teachers to educate and high school staff to respond to these emergencies to train with our high schools,” he said. “We offer them Narcan… Thus, even before reaching there, they can get a quick response to help us in the life -saving process.”
According to The Times, McQuaid, a graduate of Fountain Valley High School, lived with his family at Huntington Beach and received a master’s degree in Public Security Leadership and Executive Management from Arizona State University in 2022.
City officials, “the loss of the department is deeply felt and served very loyalty throughout the city,” he said. “We are grateful for the legacy he has left behind, and we will continue to honor his memory in everything we do.”
The city did not publish a cause of death. Details of commemoration services have not yet been announced.
Luis Zuniga contributed to this report.
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