Team

The Fire & Emergency Services department is comprised of 126 highly skilled staff who are responsible for providing a wide range of programs and services including public fire & safety education, fire prevention, investigation and enforcement and fire suppression:

• Fire Chief/Director – Dan Smith
• Fire Services – Fire Administration, Urban Fire, Rural Fire (124)
• Emergency Management – Business Continuity & Emergency Management Planning Coordinator (1)

Responsibilities

Fire and Emergency Services provides public safety to the citizens, businesses and visitors of the City. These services include programs such as fire prevention/public education, fire and emergency response and emergency management/business continuity. The department provides these services through two distinct programs of Fire Services and Emergency Management.

Fire Services is a composite department made up of both fulltime and volunteer (paid on call) firefighters. The department also operates a robust fire inspection and public education program as well as conducts fire investigations under the authority of the Office of the Fire Marshal.

The Emergency Management program operates under the provincial Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act. This program also conducts public outreach through public education in order to prepare, prevent and mitigate community disasters. Fire and Emergency Services operates on three pillars; public education, inspection/enforcement and emergency response in order to keep our City safe.

• Internal stakeholders: Council, City departmental staff
• External stakeholders: Federal and Provincial Government, allied agencies (Belleville Police, Hastings/Quinte EMS), service providers, local
  businesses, mutual-aid fire service partners, citizens, visitors.

Governance

Municipal guiding documents and plans that govern the work of Fire & Emergency Services:

• Fire Protection & Prevention Act – Provides legislated powers, and responsibilities for municipalities to provide fire protection programs.
• Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act – Provides legislated requirements for emergency management program.
• Ontario Regulation 213/07: Fire Code – Provides provincial requirements for fire safety in all building types.

Trends

Legislative/Governance

• Community Risk Assessments requirements for all municipalities (complete).
• Firefighter certification with requirement rollout dates of 2026 and 2028. Fire Management working through departmental requirements and
  creating training program to achieve compliance.

Economic

• Viability and financial sustainability of core emergency services. Goal of utilizing results of fire master plan to determine sustainable emergency response and effectively utilizing resources across the municipality.

Municipal Budget

• The department had pre-approved budgetary items in the 2024 budget for staffing levels. These positions were negotiated with the closure of fire dispatch in 2024.

Technology

• Many opportunities for Information Technology advancement and new technology deployment to enhance internal efficiencies and external engagement and efficiency in service delivery.