County Celebrates its Completion of the Regional Fire Communications Center and Expansion of the Emergency Operations Center.
Strengthening regional response and emergency coordination across the county
Sharing on behalf of Santa Barbara County - Santa Barbara County officials and public safety partners gathered on December 9, 2025, at 4406 & 4408 Cathedral Oaks Road in Santa Barbara to officially cut the ribbon on the newly completed Emergency Operations Center and Regional Fire Communication Center Building expansion. This milestone marks a new era in emergency response for the region.
The Regional Fire Communications Center (RFCC) dispatches emergency calls for all seven local fire agencies and American Medical Response (AMR), fulfilling a long-term goal to centralize fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) dispatch, streamline response times, and improve coordination during emergencies.
“This facility embodies years of planning, collaboration, and commitment across city and county agencies,” said Chair of the Board of Supervisors, Laura Capps. “We now have a modern, unified dispatch center that sends the closest available help, regardless of jurisdiction. This is a major step forward in public safety for everyone in Santa Barbara County.”
The new Regional Fire Communications Center now handles dispatch services for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Protection District, Santa Barbara City Fire Department, Montecito Fire Protection District, Lompoc Fire Department, Guadalupe Fire Department, Santa Maria Fire Department, and American Medical Response. Dispatchers at the RFCC are trained Emergency Medical Dispatchers (EMD), equipped to provide life-saving pre-arrival instructions, including CPR, while help is in route.
“The vision for the Regional Fire Communications Center began years ago through collaboration and hard work with our Operational Area partners. The unified approach of the Operational Area Fire Chiefs—delivering service regardless of jurisdictional boundaries—has been the driving force behind this accomplishment. Today, that vision becomes reality, and this center represents what we can accomplish together for the people of Santa Barbara County,” said Santa Barbara County Fire Chief and Fire Warden Garret F. Huff.
The project also included an expansion of the existing Emergency Operations Center, creating a new expanded Joint Information Center and Call Center to support the communication needs of Santa Barbara County residents during emergencies.
The Emergency Operations Center is activated during emergencies, this includes during large scale events, evacuations or in-preparation for in-coming storms. The Joint Information Center serves as the hub for collaboration across multiple agencies to ensure streamlined coordination to support the gathering, verification and dissemination of accurate, accessible, and timely information to the public. Additionally, the Call Center expansion greatly enhances the County’s ability to provide the community with information and answer questions during a disaster.
“Emergency response is a team effort involving multiple agencies, and this expansion gives us the space and resources to bring together decision-makers, responders, and communicators under one roof to work more efficiently to better serve the public,” said Kelly Hubbard, Director of the Office of Emergency Management.
Originally approved by the Board of Supervisors to being design in July 2021 and breaking ground in April 2023, the $17.9 million expansion project was led by County General Services with support from the County Fire Department and the Office of Emergency Management. Local firms, RRM Design Group and Edwards Construction Group were responsible for the design and construction, respectively.