At 20 years old, Hendrix McKinnon is already building a promising career as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), responding to 911 calls with McCormick Ambulance in West Hollywood, California. Though his path to the fire service was not traditional, it reflects his determination and passion to serve others.
McKinnon’s journey started at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, where he enrolled to study mechanical engineering. However, after one semester, he realized that the small liberal arts school with a strong religious presence was not the right fit for him.
“It just wasn’t the environment I was looking for. I felt out of place and wasn’t getting the experience I needed,” McKinnon said.
McKinnon made the decision to drop out and look for something more hands-on which led him to ride-alongs with the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Department where he learned fire house etiquette and discipline. This opportunity arose through his uncle, a member of Rancho Fire Department, and became his first taste of the realities of emergency service work.
Soon after, McKinnon enrolled in UCLA’s Center for Prehospital Care’s Accelerated EMT Program, a four-week, intensive course that prepares students to begin treating patients quickly. The program was rigorous, running four days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with frequent tests and a final exam that combined written assessments and clinical ride-alongs.
After earning his EMT license, McKinnon took a job with Viewpoint Ambulance in Anaheim, where he worked primarily on non-emergency transports, moving patients between hospitals and nursing homes. Though the calls were mostly routine, McKinnon was able to gain valuable experience in the field.
A year later, McKinnon made the move to McCormick Ambulance, where he began working directly with the LA County Fire Department on 911 calls. While in this position, he has responded to a variety of emergencies that included gunshot wounds, stabbings, car accidents, and cardiac arrests.
On the night of Jan. 7, 2025, two major fires erupted across Southern California, fueled by gusts of wind reaching up to 100 mph. The fires quickly escalated into one of the largest emergencies in the state, becoming known as the Palisades and Eaton fires.
McKinnon was working in West Hollywood when the fires broke out. His shift took an unexpected turn when he was reassigned to cover Calabasses, as local fire crews had been dispatched to the Palisades fire. At the time, McKinnon did not think much of it as he was too busy handling his regular calls to follow the news or fully grasp the severity of the fires. After a few hours, he returned to the West Hollywood station to rest up for the night.
Around 8 p.m., McKinnon received a call. He and his partner were needed at the Eaton fire to assist with evacuations. The urgency of the situation was clear; over 300 people needed to be removed from a convalescent home, to which McKinnon responded and headed directly to help assist with the Eaton fire.
As they drove through Altadena, getting closer to the fire’s path, McKinnon recalls the overwhelming sight and feeling of the flames.
“The smoke was thick, and there was an orange glow everywhere,” said McKinnon. “You could see embers bouncing off the street, and even from inside the ambulance, you could feel the heat.”
When McKinnon and his partner arrived at the convalescent home, they found that most of the residents had already been evacuated. While it was a relief, the crisis was not over. By 6:50 a.m., McKinnon was back on the road and headed towards the Eaton fire once again.
“By then, the fire had been burning all night, and it was much bigger. Dispatch sent us a ping to another convalescent home where people might need to be evacuated but it was in the middle of the fire so we couldn’t get to it,” said McKinnon.
Although frustrated, McKinnon eventually learned from another crew that the home had already been evacuated. Still, there was little time to rest as he and his partner could get called to another location at any time so they staged at the Rose Bowl parking lot, waiting for further instructions. After being held over a couple of hours, McKinnon was relieved from duty and allowed to return back home where he had the opportunity to process being stationed at the destructive fires.
“The atmosphere at the fires was chaotic. I remember seeing one older man with a garden hose, trying to put out debris fires on his lawn. Some of the homes that stayed standing were the ones where people stayed to defend them. But fighting a fire with a garden hose? That’s extremely risky. You have to properly weigh the value of protecting your home against the danger of a fire as big as this.” said McKinnon.
For McKinnon, the work is both rewarding and exhausting. Though still early in his career, he feels he has found his calling as an EMT, one that allows him to serve his community while also growing as a healthcare professional and working alongside firefighters.
As of Feb. 12, 2025, the Palisades fire is fully contained, with over 6,000 structures destroyed and 12 confirmed fatalities. The Eaton fire is also fully contained, resulting in over 9,000 structures destroyed and 17 confirmed deaths.
