Ronald Tomacruz, Firefighter/Engineer

It was Engineer Ronald Tomacruz’s first day at Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Fire Station 80, and he had just been cleared to drive the big rigs that are specially designed for serving the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

At about 3:50 A.M. on Wednesday, August 19, 2020, the Fire Station 80 crew received a call that FedEx Flight 1026, a Boeing 767, needed to make an emergency landing due to a malfunction with the landing gear.

Engineer Tomacruz and his fellow LAFD members were on the scene before the plane was expected to land, in position and ready to act fast.

The plane was able to land safely, save for sparks flying as it slid down the runway on its left side, where the landing gear had not deployed.

The FedEx incident was the largest the airport has seen since the 1990s, but Engineer Tomacruz knows firsthand the daily training that is required to be ready for the worst-case scenario. Fire Station 80 is a highly specialized fire station that exclusively serves LAX, the second busiest airport in the United States.

Engineer Tomacruz has a special Aircraft and Rescue Fire Fighters (ARFF) certification, which is required to even be employed at Fire Station 80 and to operate much of the technical equipment. The giant, green apparatus unique to Fire Station 80 are much larger than the average red fire engine. These rigs do not fit in a normal lane on the average roadway, so they never go offsite. Whether building and installing a new engine or changing the massive tires, all repairs must happen at the airport.

“It’s like going from driving a school bus your whole career to suddenly flying a plane,”

Engineer Tomacruz said of his experience learning to drive the specialized rigs.

He is certainly no stranger to learning curves, reflected in his active role as an In-Service Training driving instructor. After promoting to Engineer in 2006, Tomacruz became an Employee Testing Program (ETP) member and has directly assisted in all aspects of LAFD firefighter driver training, from developing videos and virtual simulations to administering live driving exams.

Firefighters are required to obtain and maintain a California Class "B" or Firefighter's driver's license as a condition of employment, so any firefighters fresh off probation would recognize Engineer Tomacruz from the four training videos that they watch before their driving test.

In 2023, he completed more driving exams than any other ETP member, resulting in the program itself achieving the highest number of completed driving exams since its existence.

“I always wanted to try and give back in some way, and that’s how I got into teaching,”

Engineer Tomacruz shared.

Engineer Tomacruz started his journey to become the first firefighter in his family “later in the game,” he says, at age 20. A neighbor from his high school years was an LAFD firefighter who steered him in the direction of the fire service.

He went through the LAFD Cadet program, secured his associate degree in fire science, and finished at the top of his Fire Academy class. Engineer Tomacruz was officially hired by the LAFD in 2001.

Before getting on at Fire Station 80, he worked for nine years at Fire Station 5 and did overtime at Fire Station 63. He vividly remembers the numerous brush fires that the crew would respond to, and even recalls getting smacked by Phos-Chek – the pink cloud of fire retardant that firefighters deploy from the sky – more than once.

“There’s a lot of stuff to learn on this job,” Engineer Tomacruz reflected, noting the differences between his day-to-day at Fire Station 5 versus Fire Station 80.

Engineer Tomacruz considers himself both a teacher and a lifelong student. He completed his bachelor’s degree in emergency management in just eight months while in his first year at Fire Station 80.

“What makes your career is the people you work with. I’m very fortunate to be able to work with great people,” Engineer Tomacruz expressed. For firefighters pursuing a career in the fire service, he encourages an open mind and willingness to take on the inevitable learning curves step by step.  

“It’s all about the process. If you show initiative and put yourself out there, people will be there to support you and help you succeed.”