VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Space Force Base, the 30th Civil Engineer Squadron Fire and Emergency Services Flight won multiple awards in 2025, highlighting their dedication to maintaining extraordinary crisis response and mission capabilities.
This year, Vandenberg’s Fire Department earned:
The Fire and Emergency Services Flight provides structural, hazardous material, aircraft crash, fire prevention, fire protection and emergency medical response for all facilities and personnel at Vandenberg SFB.
U.S. Space Force Col. James T. Horne III, Space Launch Delta 30 commander, provided remarks on the successes of Vandenberg’s team.
“These prestigious honors highlight the critical role 30 CES plays in every aspect of the mission,” said Horne. “From maintaining our infrastructure to protecting our people, their dedication ensures the readiness and success of Space Launch Delta 30.”
An instance of Vandenberg’s Fire Team response excellence occurred April 3rd, when smoke incessantly rose on South Base. The quick response of the Fire Team led to stopping the spread of a 22.8 acre fire.
Mark Smith, Vandenberg Fire Department assistant chief of operations, was on the scene, including five fire engines, two water tenders, two dozers, the hand crew, and a helicopter.
“Every April, we focus heavily on wildland firefighting, which includes a three-week academy for our newest members,” said Smith. “We were just wrapping up a two-day class on incident management when this fire broke out, it was a great opportunity to put our training to the test in real time and evaluate how effective it was.”
To stop the fire from spreading, Mark Smith and his team led the containment effort, actively assisted by the Lompoc Fire Department, Santa Barbara County Fire Department and Los Padres National Forest Dispatch.
“Even though this wasn’t a massive fire, it was an excellent test of our readiness and our mutual aid agreements,” said Smith. “Relying on our local partners is standard practice. This gave us a chance to exercise those partnerships and knock the fire out quickly together.”
The awards earned by the Vandenberg Fire Department are a testament to these professionals, their resiliency, and capability of adapting to quickly spreading fires and unforeseen circumstances.
“Their success at the United States Space Force level is a clear indicator of the excellence we strive for,” said Horne.