The Fire and Rescue Department held a special swearing-in ceremony on Friday Oct. 30 at the City Council Chambers to honor both the promotion of three new fire captains and a division chief as well as the memory of those who perished in the Sept.11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Steve Airey, Fred McDowell and Taylor Voss received their badges at the event. Airey and McDowell are newly promoted captains and Voss was promoted last August. In addition, recently promoted Division Chief Jason Pyle also received his badge.

“With this promotion, we are moving three veteran firefighters with decades of experience to the helm of our company office cadre,” Fire and Rescue Chief Dan Stefano said. “I look forward to their contributions to the fire service and the Costa Mesa community for years to come.”

Airey began his career with the Costa Mesa Fire Department in September, 2003 and as a firefighter/paramedic. In 2013, he managed a project to activate the department’s first Paramedic Assessment Unit and he’s spent 16 years as a seasonal beach lifeguard with the City of Coronado. He’s a graduate of the Santa Ana College Fire Academy and he has a Bachelor’s Degree in kinesiology from San Diego State University.

A longtime musician, McDowell joined the Costa Mesa Fire Department Honor Guard as a volunteer bugler in 1995 and was later hired as a firefighter in 1998 and promoted to fire engineer in 2002. He is a graduate of the Santa Ana College Fire Academy. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in education and music from Cal State University Fullerton, and he has continued his volunteer role with the Honor Guard for 20 years.

Voss is a third-generation firefighter who joined the Costa Mesa Fire Department in 2003. He has been the department’s EMS Committee Chair and has been a key member on the Rescue Ambulance Committee, among many other departmental contributions. Further, Taylor brings over three years of experience, training, and leadership from his respected military service as a member of the United States Navy. He is a graduate of the Santa Ana College Basic Fire Academy and is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree from Kaplan University.

In addition to the captain and division chief promotions, the fire department announced that Daniel Cooper and Clint Brown have officially begun their employment with the Fire Department as paramedics. The pair will first complete the Orange County Paramedic accreditation process and then begin an intensive, two-week orientation academy before being placed into their respective shift assignments.

Cooper is a graduate of El Camino College’s Basic Fire Academy and the Paramedic Training Institute. He has recent experience working as a firefighter/paramedic for the Sierra Madre Fire Department, in addition to experience working as a reserve firefighter for the Culver City Fire Department and as an ambulance operator for the Long Beach and Hermosa Beach Fire Departments. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from California State University, Los Angeles.

Brown is a graduate of San Pasqual’s Basic Fire Academy and the National College of Technical Instruction’s Paramedic Program. Most recently, he worked as a paramedic in Riverside County, as an EMT with Care Ambulance, and previously served as a reserve firefighter for the Fountain Valley Fire Department.

Coinciding with the swearing in ceremony was a display of the 9-11 Rescue Remembrance Project at City Hall. The firetruck was one of several Rescue units that were called into service when terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001. Every member of that rescue firetruck team perished in the World Trade Center attacks. The Rescue truck has been visiting Southern California fire agencies throughout the summer and will leave Costa Mesa Friday as it goes on tour throughout the nation.