With a career spanning over 25 years in the California fire service, Bob has over 40 years experience as a leader in emergency management and brings an extensive operational knowledge of the emergency response community to the EMSI cadre.

With a diverse knowledge and experience in emergency and incident management, Bob rose through the ranks of the San Luis Obispo (SLO) Fire Department, from dispatcher and firefighter to ultimately serving as a Fire Chief. As a member of various Incident Management Teams, he has responded to fires, earthquakes, landslides, and floods throughout California, as well as hurricanes and hazardous materials incidents nationwide. During the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, he spent two months deployed and served in the response’s IMTs. He currently serves on the US Forest Service’s California Central Coast IMT as an Operations Section Chief and Liaison Officer.

Indicative of his expertise, Bob has specialized training in Emergency Management, Homeland Security, Emergency Medical Services, Fire/Rescue, Hazardous Materials, Urban Search and Rescue, Aircraft Rescue Firefighting, and Advanced Incident Management. Experienced with multiple major incident/mutual aid activations under his belt, he has extensive experience working with the Multiagency Coordination System (MACS) and responding at the EOC-level for multiple major incidents.

As the Director of Emergency Services for the City of San Luis Obispo, Bob was critical to the design, development, and execution emergency operations training classes and exercises for all 400+ city employees. Teaching Incident Command System, NIMS, and Multi-Hazard Emergency Response Plans to non-safety government employees, he consistently produced training sessions that met both federal and private industry needs, while motivating students to learn and engage. Currently serving as the Estero Bay Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program coordinator for the Morro Bay Fire Department, Bob volunteers as the lead trainer and program developer for the program and has taught over 1,300 students in this role.

Committed to progress in the emergency management field, Bob co-founded and served seven years as past director of the SLO County Regional Hazardous Materials Response Team, as well as co-founding and serving twelve years as the past director of the SLO County Fire Chiefs Critical Incident Response Team. In these positions, he guided the development of response capabilities, while ensuring the safety of responders during these dangerous incidents.

Continuing to serve his community, Bob sits on the Board of Directors for the County’s Emergency Medical Service Agency and serves as the Chair for the Trauma Committee. He also acts as the treasurer of the SLO County Fire Safe Council.

Bob holds a Bachelor of Science in Soil Science from the California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, CA. He is currently certified as a Type 1 Operations Section Chief and Liaison Officer.