Supporting key projects that equip and protect Los Angeles firefighters.
Improving firefighter health, safety and wellness.
Enhancing firefighters' ability to perform their life-saving duties.
Expanding the resources needed to protect life, property, and the environment.
Urgent funding needs requested and informed by LAFD leadership.
Wildland gloves are a critical piece of personal protective equipment for firefighters responding to brush fires and wildland incidents. Designed for high heat, sharp terrain, and extended wear, these gloves offer greater dexterity and protection than standard structure fire gloves, helping prevent burns, blisters, and hand injuries in challenging conditions.
The LAFD is working to outfit every firefighter with two sets of wildland gloves to ensure readiness for year-round wildfire threats. This essential investment directly improves firefighter safety and performance on the front lines. Donor support will help ensure that all LAFD personnel are fully equipped to meet the growing demands of wildland firefighting across Los Angeles.
When wildfires break out across California, LAFD firefighters are often deployed for weeks at a time under extremely demanding conditions. Without proper travel bags, they face the challenge of carrying essential tools, gear, and personal necessities in makeshift or insufficient packs.
The LAFD wants to secure specialized, tactical 14-day travel bags designed specifically for these extended missions. These bags are easy to carry yet built to hold everything a firefighter needs for a long stint on the fire line. This gear ensures that LAFD crews can remain fully equipped with the necessary resources to protect communities here in Los Angeles and when mutual aid duty calls.
At busy LAFD fire stations, washers and dryers are often working overtime. With more than ten firefighters at some stations relying on the same set of machines, these units quickly wear down from constant use. When washers and dryers break or become unusable, firefighters are left without a dependable way to clean their uniforms and station wear between calls.
The Foundation wants to ensure that every LAFD fire station is equipped with a high-capacity washer and dryer, ensuring that firefighters have clean gear, dependable station equipment, and a reliable means to clean their uniforms and station wear between calls.
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The LAFD fire stations stand as symbols of service and sacrifice — but many are showing their age. More than half of the city’s fire stations are over 50 years old, built in a different era and not designed to handle today’s demands. Decades of nonstop operation, heavy equipment, and round-the-clock use have taken a visible toll.
Peeling paint, cracked flooring, worn-out surfaces, and outdated finishes now greet the firefighters who dedicate their lives to protecting the community. What were once state-of-the-art facilities have become environments that challenge both safety and morale. Investing in new flooring, fresh paint, and essential upkeep isn’t just about appearances — it’s about creating a clean, safe, and functional space for those who serve the city 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Reliable internet connectivity is critical for LAFD’s specialty units operating in remote or infrastructure-damaged areas. Starlink satellite systems provide high-speed, portable internet access where traditional service is unavailable, ensuring that units like Arson, Brush Clearance, and Urban Search and Rescue can maintain communication, access mapping tools, transmit data, and coordinate effectively in the field.
These systems have become an integral part of emergency response, particularly during wildfires or large-scale incidents in rugged terrain. With additional Starlink units, the LAFD can expand connectivity across more teams, reduce communication gaps, and enhance operational efficiency when and where it matters most. Donor support will help equip specialized personnel with the tools they need to respond safely and effectively—no matter the location.
The Los Angeles Fire Department is working to adopt Tablet Command—a cloud-based incident management system used successfully by other fire agencies in the region. This technology replaces outdated, paper-based tracking with real-time digital tools that enhance coordination, situational awareness, and resource management during emergency incidents. With Tablet Command, commanders can view unit locations, assign resources, and adjust strategies on the fly using live mapping and communication features.
Bringing this system to LAFD would modernize field operations and significantly improve response efficiency, particularly during large-scale incidents or complex rescues. It also allows for seamless coordination across agencies during mutual aid events. With support from donors, the LAFD can equip its incident commanders with this proven technology—helping ensure faster, more informed decisions that protect lives, property, and firefighter safety across Los Angeles.
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The LAFD responds to over 500,000 calls annually, with many involving low-acuity patients who unnecessarily crowd emergency rooms. This issue, compounded by the high number of incidents involving people experiencing homelessness, strains resources and extends wait times at hospitals. There is a critical need for a solution that addresses these inefficiencies and improves the overall emergency medical response.
The LAFD launched the Advanced Provider Response Units (APRUs) to address this issue. Each unit pairs a paramedic with a nurse practitioner to provide on-site care and reduce the need for hospital transport. This program has significantly decreased emergency room congestion, improved patient outcomes, and lowered healthcare costs.
Water Tenders are critical support vehicles that supply large volumes of water to fire engines operating in areas without nearby hydrants—particularly in brush zones, hillside neighborhoods, and during wildfire responses. These specialized trucks allow crews to sustain fire suppression efforts in terrain where access to water is limited or non-existent.
The LAFD is seeking to add an additional Water Tender to its fleet to meet growing demand in high-risk regions. Expanding this capacity ensures that firefighters have the resources needed to control fast-moving fires and protect both lives and property.
A Type 6 engine is light, fast, and agile vehicle, designed to access terrain that larger fire engines simply cannot reach. With a dedicated water tank, off-road capability, and a pump for immediate attack, it allows the LAFD to respond to small fires before they become uncontrollable. This vehicle is especially useful for wildland-urban interface areas like the hills and canyons around Los Angeles.
By adding more Type 6 vehicles to the LAFD fleet, it ensures that the LAFD can get where they need to go, carry essential firefighting tools, and act quickly to protect lives, property, and the city’s natural spaces.
Heavy equipment such as bulldozers, excavators, and skid steers plays a vital role in wildfire response and post-incident recovery. These machines allow LAFD crews to clear fire roads, create defensible space, remove hazardous debris, and access hard-to-reach areas that standard apparatus cannot reach. They are essential for both active firefighting and long-term mitigation efforts.
Expanding LAFD’s fleet of heavy equipment improves safety, speeds up recovery, and increases the Department’s ability to protect communities before, during, and after major incidents. With donor support, the Foundation can help ensure that firefighters have the right tools to operate effectively in extreme conditions and preserve access to critical terrain throughout Los Angeles.
Collaborating with LAFD leadership to address urgent needs and provide long-term support.
As one of the most important programs directly impacting the LAFD members daily, the Adopt-A-Fire-Station (AAFS) program strives to maintain the operational quality of the equipment and appliances in each of the 106 LAFD fire stations. These fire stations serve as a second “home” for their members who live and work there 24/7. The constant around-the-clock use of equipment and appliances results in a shorter lifespan and more frequent repair incidents for these everyday essential items. Before the AAFS program existed, LAFD members had to cover these replacement and repair costs themselves.
The requested funding will be allocated to stations in underserved communities that receive limited financial support from neighboring businesses and community members.
Firefighters face intense physical and emotional challenges on the job, making mental health support a vital part of overall wellness. The LAFD Behavioral Health Program provides critical resources to help members process trauma, manage stress, and stay healthy both on and off duty. Initiatives include the Women’s Wellness Workshop, LAFD Wellness Days, the Trauma Response Program, canine therapy, and other specialized services tailored to the unique needs of first responders.
With continued donor support, the Foundation can expand access to these essential programs and develop new initiatives that prioritize firefighter mental health. Investing in behavioral wellness not only supports individual healing—it strengthens the Department as a whole and helps ensure that LAFD members remain resilient, focused, and ready to serve the city of Los Angeles.
When city budget cuts happen, non-emergency items like office furniture are often the first to go. Many LAFD departments and specialty divisions are working with office furniture and other essentials that are more than 30 years old.
While much of the public sees LAFD’s frontline response, the behind-the-scenes operations are equally essential to keeping the Department running 24/7. Offices supporting Metro Dispatch, specialty units, and command staff rely on functional, ergonomic furniture and updated supplies to maintain focus, efficiency, and coordination during high-pressure situations. Basic items like durable office chairs, desks, and organizational tools directly impact day-to-day operations and long-term staff wellbeing.
For more information about the items or programs highlighted above, please contact:
The LAFD Foundation supports the LAFD in protecting life, property, and the environment by providing essential equipment and funding programs to supplement city resources.
Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
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