Amador County – The new Amador Division Chief of Cal-Fire brings 23 years’ experience, including apparatus engineering in Amador County, as well as helicopter firefighting, incident command and training.

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Amador-El Dorado Unit pinned a new Southern Division Assistant Fire Chief last month. Assistant Chief Brian Estes is the new Division Chief for Amador County and was pinned with his Division Chief badge on March 5 by Unit Chief Kelly Keenan.

Keenan announced the promotion of Estes from Battalion Chief as his new Assistant Chief in charge of Southern Division Operations and the Pine Grove Conservation Camp. Estes, of El Dorado Hills, “brings many years of valuable experience, both locally and at the state level, to his new duties as AEU’s Amador County Division Chief,” Keenan said. Estes “embodies Cal-Fire’s ability to develop and recruit future leaders for the Department.”

Estes began his fire service career in 1989 working as a U.S. Forest Service fire fighter on hand crews and “helitack” crews. In 1993, he was hired by Cal-Fire as a firefighter in the San Diego Unit. In 1995, he moved to the Tuolumne Calaveras Unit and worked as a Helitack Firefighter on a Cal-Fire Helicopter until promoting to Fire Apparatus Engineer in Amador County in 1998.

Estes was promoted to Fire Captain B in El Dorado County at Growlersburg Conservation Camp in 2001. He transferred to the Unit’s Training Bureau in 2003 as a Fire Captain and was promoted to Training Bureau Battalion Chief in 2006. In 2008, Estes moved into a Field Battalion and supervised the Amador-El Dorado Unit’s Battalion 1 encompassing El Dorado and Camino Stations including AEU Headquarters.

Estes has extensive Cal-Fire Incident Command Team experience as a Type I Operations Section Chief with Incident Command Teams 1 and 10. He is currently the Incident Commander Trainee for Incident Command Team 5. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University at Chico. Estes lives in El Dorado Hills with his wife Kelly and daughter Peyton.

Estes replaces former Amador Division Chief Brian Kirk, who left the position about six months ago. The Amador Division includes Pine Grove Camp, and two battalions, 3 and 4, in Amador County, as well as the Amador Plan.

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