Police staffing, fire response and lifeguard rescues highlighted in State of the City remarks

Captain Justin Shabali, introduced himself as the city’s chief of police services during the State of the City luncheon and said 2025 saw a significant decrease in crime after the department reached full staffing. “This is due because of the city getting full staffing for the first time in several years,” he said, crediting proactive patrols and improved response times.

Fire and emergency response figures were presented for 2025: the city’s three fire stations handled more than 6,100 incidents, including 48 structure‑fire calls, more than 4,900 medical aids and about 1,900 miscellaneous responses such as hazardous‑materials or traffic incidents. The speaker credited Orange County Fire Authority strike teams and mutual aid partnerships for limiting vegetation fires to under a quarter acre in noted incidents.

Emergency infrastructure: The speaker noted creation of a South County helipad at Station 59 that allows helicopters to pre‑deploy during fire weather, and announced an upcoming helipod installation on Ridgeline Trail intended to provide water supply for helicopters; he said the helipod project was funded in part by Supervisor Katrina Foley and coordinated with the city, a homeowners association, and OCFA.

Beach safety: March visitation reportedly rose to about 147,000 visitors; lifeguards conducted 175 swimmer rescues in March 2026 (the speaker said that exceeded the combined total of March rescues from 2015–2025). The junior lifeguard program has grown from about 25 to roughly 800 participants annually; 18 of 23 candidates earned promotion to ocean lifeguard positions, and Hazel Thrush was named top rookie.

What was not decided: These comments were status reports and announcements; no policy vote or budget adoption was recorded at the luncheon.