Passing of Two City Employees Reported

The City of Long Beach lost two of its employees in recent days: The city’s traffic engineer and a firefighter.

Traffic Engineer and Acting City Engineer Carl Hickman died during the weekend of Sept. 17-18, according to the city. The exact date and cause are unknown as the family has asked for privacy while they grieve.

“Recently, the City of Long Beach learned of the sad news that Carl Reed Hickman, our city traffic engineer and acting city engineer, passed away. Carl proudly served the Public Works team and was an integral part of the city family. He will be greatly missed. Our hearts and thoughts go out to his family and friends,” the city said in a statement.

“Carl was a licensed professional engineer and licensed professional traffic engineer. He began his career with the City of Long Beach in 2016 as a senior traffic engineer. In 2018, he was promoted to Assistant city traffic engineer and was quickly promoted one year later to city traffic engineer where he oversaw the Transportation Mobility Bureau.

“In 2021, Carl was appointed acting city engineer, where he would also oversee the Engineering Bureau and help with significant citywide projects such as Market Street Corridor Improvements, the Open Streets Program, Shoemaker Bridge, Shoreline Realignment as well as many others. He served approximately 6 years and 9 months with the City of Long Beach. 

“Carl was an avid boater and fisherman, residing in Long Beach and Avalon, California. He is survived by his wife, two daughters and his extended family. The family has requested to grieve privately,” the city said.

The Beachcomber interviewed Hickman through email in August and presented his quotes for the Sept. 23 issue of the newspaper regarding the minor changes he requested for the Lakewood Boulevard and 23rd Street intersection, following the death of 7-year old Gabriel Alexander Garate.

Garate was struck by a vehicle in the intersection and died of his injuries. The driver of the pickup truck was later arrested for felony vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.

The Beachcomber emailed Hickman a follow-up question the morning of Monday, Sept. 19, but did not hear back. Unbeknownst to the newspaper, he had died a day or two prior. His comments from the August interview were published Sept. 23.

Hickman took over for the city’s previous traffic engineer, Eric Widstrand, who resigned in 2019 to pursue opportunities in the private sector following the completion of the Broadway Corridor “road diet,” which received backlash from the public and media attention.

The East Broadway Complete Streets Improvement Project was approved by the city council and is part of the “complete streets initiatives.”

Hickman, who was the assistant traffic engineer in 2019, became the head traffic engineer after Widstrand’s departure.

After residents complained about Broadway, Hickman visited the corridor and made changes here and there to try and improve the situation.

Hickman always took the time to answer the Beachcomber’s questions and was straightforward with his answers, even during the controversial Broadway road diet topic.

Former Broadway store owner, Merry Colvin of “Merry’s,” had many talks with Hickman in 2019 about the road diet.

“He would stop by and visit during that whole time,” she said. “We didn’t always agree but he kept the line of communication open and I was appreciative of that, I really was. I’m sorry that he’s gone because he was people-oriented. You don’t see that in city government that much anymore.”

Hickman was 58, according to the Press-Telegram.

The Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD) announced the death of Firefighter Gavin Escobar, who died in an off-duty accident on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, in Idyllwild. He was 31.

Hired to the LBFD on February 5, 2022, Escobar was assigned to Fire Station 3 on B-shift.

“A recent graduate of our Fire Academy, Class 2022A, the Training Captains who oversaw his performance described him as an observer and learner. He watched everything closely to perfect his trade,” the LBFD said in a statement.

“Firefighter Escobar was well-mannered, soft spoken and very polite. He possessed a high degree of situational awareness throughout his experience as a recruit firefighter that followed him into the fire station. He was a natural leader who led by example.

“His classmates looked to Gavin for guidance, answers and insight based on his life experiences. Gavin was steady, calm and consistent under pressure where he possessed a quiet sense of humility, especially considering his personal accomplishments as a professional football player.

“Fellow classmates from Gavin’s academy stated, Gavin was a great friend to all, a good teammate and somebody you could always count on for encouragement and support.

“Firefighter Gavin Escobar worked hard. He was dedicated to learning his trade and possessed the positive attributes that made him a good student, a positive role model and a person that others wanted to be around …”

 Escobar is survived by his wife, Sarah and their two young daughters.

“Gavin will be missed by his peers. We stand ready to support Sarah, his children and his family as they mourn this loss,” the LBFD said.