Jim Drennan sworn in as new South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue fire chief

"This experience has been very humbling," Chief Jim Drennan said Tuesday as he thanked the department, family, friends, community, and City staff for their support in his new position.

“Chief Drennan is a collaborative leader who leans into regional initiatives to improve response capabilities throughout the Basin," said South Lake Tahoe City Manager Joe Irvin. "He not only makes South Lake Tahoe safer but works to make the entire Basin safer for residents and visitors alike. His leadership is founded on strong character, doing the right thing, and walking the walk. He doesn’t ask of anyone anything he wouldn’t or hasn’t done himself. That is the mark of a true leader and I’m proud to name him as our next Fire Chief.”

Drennan started originally as a reserve firefighter for South Lake Tahoe in January of 2000, going full time in December 2002. Since that time he has moved through the ranks to Battalion Chief in 2016, and then as interim fire chief this past spring. He said he is "very excited" to be the City's new fire chief.

“It is an honor to be appointed as Fire Chief of a City that I love and have served for more than 22 years," said Chief Drennan. "The men and women of this department embody what it means to be in the Fire service and I am looking forward to leading them into the next chapter.”

His immediate goals are to continue the department on an "even keel," and continue their teamwork and operations. There are some major projects he'd like to see through, including a remodel of station #1, building up the fire prevention side of the department, and creating a proper fire prevention bureau.

South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue (SLTFR) is currently fully staffed with 37 line staff, three defensible space inspectors, and one PIO/administrative assistant serving with Drennan.

If he could waive a magic wand without budgets to meet, Drennan said he'd like new facilities, a full prevention program, and a 4th engine company.

In the meantime, he'll get a new engine into service in May 2023 as well as an engine that is out for repairs after a crash, and work on station #2.

Drennan said the department is seeing more staff staying, which is good on many fronts but especially since there are fewer applying for fire service jobs in South Lake Tahoe and across the country.

The new chief graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. He grew up in the Sacramento Valley and Folsom area and had been visiting home for the Christmas holiday when a family friend with Sacramento Fire showed him a career he was interested in. He found he wanted something more mentally and physically challenging than a career in law or education would provide him (the path he was heading to). He then went back to school for a fire career.

Drennan's family has owned a home in the Echo Lake area for decades, so he was very familiar with Lake Tahoe when he first arrived in 1999 (the same year the department's Engine #3 arrived).

The Chief married his wife Jennifer in 2006 and they have two children, a 13-year-old son, and an 11-year-old girl. He said his son thinks it is pretty cool that dad is the fire chief, though he may not follow in dad's fire service footprints. Drennan said right now he is more focused on being a rock star as he is very proficient on drums, guitar, and bass.

In his time with the City, Drennan has managed multiple engine companies, provided incident command at large incidents, commanded engine company emergency response, and directed station activities related to fire suppression, inspection, prevention, training, and public education. Most recently, as a Battalion Chief, Drennan assumed full command responsibility for fire suppression and emergency response. He has been assigned to the Training Chief, Administration Chief, and Operations Chief positions at different times over the last six years. During the Caldor Fire, he worked in the Emergency Operations Center as well as at the command post as a Liaison for the City to help coordinate response. Once the fire made it to the summit he spent most of his time in the field working with local resources. In addition, Drennan works closely with the other Tahoe Basin fire entities to ensure mutual aid and joint emergency response is seamless. After the department secured the SAFER grant in 2020 for seven firefighter positions, he led the re-opening of Fire Station 2 to support the growing needs of the community. He has also created and implemented the Firefighter Rescue Policy for SLTFR and built the South Shore Response Plan, unifying response with local agencies.

Drennan has also served as Adjunct Faculty for the LTCC Lake Tahoe Basin Fire Academy since 2007 and is a member of the Echo Lakes Association as a voting Board Member. He has also completed the California Fire Chiefs Association Officer Leadership curriculum.