By Madeline Baker
The Eagle Bluff wildfire dominated the Osoyoos Fire Department’s third quarter report spanning July to September, which was presented at the November 14 Committee of the Whole meeting.
The summer’s Eagle Bluff fire caused personnel hours to balloon from 391 in the previous year to 986 in 2023, a staggering 152 per cent increase for the third quarter, on top of which the fire department also saw a 16 per cent increase in responses to emergency call-outs. Their average response time was 7:30 minutes.
Rather concerningly, 30 of the 80 call-outs in the third quarter turned out to be false alarms, most of which were a result of contractors accidentally triggering the systems where they worked. Higher vehicle traffic through the community led to motor vehicle incidents showing the second-highest increase, with 13 in the third quarter.
Even with so much of the quarter dedicated to fire and emergency response, fire department members still completed 49 hours of training across 23 topics and participated in 13 four-hour practice nights with BCEHS Paramedics, and two more of their members became fully qualified professional firefighters.
The team’s firefighters also took the “Stop the Bleed” course, learning how to apply tourniquets, pack wounds, and apply pressure to control bleeding when they are involved in life-saving interventions caused by trauma.
On the fire prevention side of their duties, the department completed 62 fire inspections in the third quarter, bringing their overall total to 217 of 318 inspectable properties in Osoyoos for which they are responsible.
They began a series of Fire Smart courses to help locals shoulder the responsibility for overall fire safety by “Fire Smarting” – following cleanliness and maintenance behaviours that reduce the amount of combustible fuel – their own properties, which should be completed in early 2024.
Future firefighter Emily Fichter, an Osoyoos high school student and daughter of department member Karl Fichter, may have had the most comprehensive fire reduction education of all after she was chosen to participate in the Camp Ignite Program.
Run out of Creston BC, Camp Ignite provides the opportunity for female students in grades 11 and 12 to participate in basic boot camp for firefighting.
Fichter said that she enjoyed the experience and meeting other girls her age with similar aspirations, and she presented pictures and stories about her time at the camp to the Fire Department once she returned.
The Fire Department’s quarterly reports often draw attention to the importance of volunteers in their work and after Osoyoos spent a tense summer in the shadow of the Eagle Bluff fire, this report was no exception: “The dedication of the paid-on-call volunteer firefighters during this time needs to be recognized,” said Osoyoos Fire Chief Corey Kortmeyer.
“Their continued commitment to fire and life safety ensures a successful fire department for the residents and our visitors in their time of need.”
