Laguna firefighters of the year announced

Laguna Beach announced its top firefighters for 2014 at the Firefighter and Law Enforcement Annual Appreciation Dinner on Saturday.

Engineer Bryan Sarjeant was selected as Firefighter of the Year by union colleagues, while volunteer Patrick Knodel was chosen as Reserve Firefighter of the Year by the department’s command staff, Fire Chief Jeff LaTendresse wrote in an email.

Sarjeant has been with the department full-time since 2008 and earned Laguna Beach Reserve of the Year honors in 2007.

Reserves are volunteers who have fire academy training and certification as emergency medical technicians, LaTendresse said.They are required to do two 24-hour shifts each month, assisting with routine operations and medical emergencies.

The department also announced the promotion last month of firefighter and paramedic David Lopez to engineer.

Lopez has been with the department since 2010 and previously was a fire dispatcher for the city of San Bernardino.

In his new role, Lopez will be responsible forthe safety of his crew and equipment while responding to emergency incidents.

The dinner was hosted by the Mission Viejo/Saddleback Valley Elks Lodge.

—Bryce Alderton

Twitter: @AldertonBryce