Despite concerns about the number of non-fire emergency calls attended by Colwood Fire Rescue, Chief Bryan Erwin says there is no call for alarm; the department has got the community covered.
In 2023, 45 per cent of Colwood FireB次元官网网址檚 call-outs were for time-critical medical emergencies the ambulance service, operated by BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS), was unable to immediately respond to.
For 2024, up to Aug. 31, Colwood attended 337 medical emergency incidents, 48 per cent of the total number of call-outs for the year so far.
At a Colwood council meeting in August, Mayor Doug Kobayashi said he was B次元官网网址榮taggeredB次元官网网址� by the statistics, questioning if the city should B次元官网网址渟tart pushing backB次元官网网址� on the support they offer to the ambulance service.
"Some other municipalities in B.C. are pushing back on it and are sending the province a bill,B次元官网网址� said Kobayashi, who added the cost implications are B次元官网网址渨orthy of discussionB次元官网网址� as the city is expected to cover the cost of sending its fire crew to these emergency calls. B次元官网网址�
Chief Erwin told the mayor he was B次元官网网址渙pen to changeB次元官网网址� and, if instructed by the city, would build a service model reflecting their wishes.
Taking a cautious approach to the matter, Coun. Cynthia Day warned against any hasty decisions that might impact the safety of the community.
B次元官网网址淲e can argue about who has to payB次元官网网址hile weB次元官网网址檙e having that argument itB次元官网网址檚 our citizens who are being put at risk,B次元官网网址� said Day. B次元官网网址淭he dollars and cents matter...but we still need to remember that is part of keeping our community safe.B次元官网网址�
Speaking to Goldstream B次元官网网址 Gazette, the fire chief explained Colwood has been a member of the first responder program for nearly three decades. The program is an agreement with BCEHS who will notify first responders, such as Colwood Fire, in the event of a time-critical emergency. Colwood Fire is one of 275 first responder agencies across B.C. with agreements in place with BCEHS.
B次元官网网址淲e've been involved in [the program] because life safety is really our priority as a fire service,B次元官网网址� said Erwin. B次元官网网址淲e want to help where we can. This is one way we can effectively provide a high level of service for our community, by continuing to help the ambulance service.B次元官网网址�
As Colwood is a small fire department with limited resources, the fire chief says any call can impact their capacity.
"We are committed to that incident and it takes away the potential for other areas," he said.
But with the mutual-aid agreement in place with neighbouring fire departments in Langford and View Royal, Erwin is confident of the support they can offer in the event of a fire emergency.
B次元官网网址淲e respond as a collective unit,B次元官网网址� said Erwin. "We have things in play that will trigger and dispatch neighbouring jurisdictions to assist with fire response. And that ensures we have the appropriate number of resources on scene and it provides the ability to have a bit of capacity depth.B次元官网网址�
Ultimately, Erwin says the number of emergencies Colwood is attending, both fire and medical, is B次元官网网址渕anageableB次元官网网址�, explaining the service is continually evaluating and planning for how it can meet demand.
B次元官网网址淔ire suppression and fire protection is our primary business and that's really where we want to look at making sure that we can maintain it," said Erwin. "When we can assist B.C. ambulance, that's what we do, we'll assist them whenever possible."
B次元官网网址淯ltimately, as an agency assisting B.C. ambulance, if we are tied up and we can't go, we're simply just delayed. But if it's fire-related, we have those thresholds in place to ensure we still have a response coming regardless.B次元官网网址�
