ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Author/Local: K. Bigsby

604-261-6894
RTS NO. 03282

CC File No. 3153

TO:

City Council

FROM:

General Manager/Fire Chief Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services

SUBJECT:

ANNUAL REPORT FROM CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO VANCOUVER FIRE & RESCUE SERVICES

 

INFORMATION

POLICY

On June 22, 1993, Council approved the recommendation of the City Manager to form a Fire Department Advisory Committee. The Committee would consist of ten people from the community and a representative from Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services.

SUMMARY

The Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC) was formed by City Council Resolution on June 22, 1993. The first meeting was held on February 9, 1994. In the year that followed, the Committee elected Dr. Tom Ward, Chairperson, developed and adopted terms of reference, met with interested parties, and reviewed important documents relating to the operation of the Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to ensure Council is informed as to the activities and progress of the Citizens' Advisory Committee to the General Manager, Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services over the year 2002.

BACKGROUND

The Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC) to Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services (VFRS) was formed in 1994 to act in an advisory capacity to the Fire Chief on matters related to the development, operations and future directions of Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services. The Committee consists of ten people from the community, appointed by City Council, and a representative from Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services. Its Terms of Reference state that a City Councillor will be an ex officio member of the CAC.

The Citizens' Advisory Committee meets monthly from September to June, often at different fire halls throughout the City. The Committee tries to meet at each of the City's twenty-two fire halls over a three-year period. These meetings include presentations by an officer at the fire hall about the services required and challenges inherent in the delivery of service to the specific neighbourhood. The CAC is struck by the significant differences in the neighbourhoods that comprise the City, and the unique service requirements and challenges these present to VFRS.

The Role of the Citizens' Advisory Committee CAC
The Committee provides VFRS with the perspectives and experiences of a diverse group of lay people. The Committee believes that if any value is to be derived from its deliberations and recommendations, these need to be made when plans, programs and services are in the early stages of development.

The Committee has permanent working groups in which members take responsibility for researching and reporting on subjects of ongoing interest. These are:

Fire Prevention:
Research clearly demonstrates that fire prevention work has profound impact on fire deaths and property loss. It is also cost effective. VFRS fire suppression staffing has been stable for the past ten years while the number of buildings and the population of the City have increased; the growth in call volume is primarily due to medical, motor vehicle accident, and rescue calls.

Issues around fire prevention by-laws and regulations are well suited to involvement from this committee. Changes to by-laws can be expensive for some citizens and so may be resisted. Committee members provide a lay perspective on proposed by-law changes.

The CAC is concerned about possible reductions in school education programs due to budget restrictions; corporate sponsorship for this program is helping to maintain it.

Teaching children about fire safety, especially in a city with a high proportion of non-English speaking immigrants, is an important loss prevention measure.

Some other fire prevention issues of particular interest to the Committee in 2002 were:

E-Comm:
The CAC is delighted that VFRS is now being dispatched from E-Comm. The Committee strongly supports a common dispatch system for all emergency services.

Budgeting:
Understanding the budget and the budgeting process is necessary for the Committee to appreciate the financial position of VFRS. Budget issues are critically important because VFRS has no elasticity in its financial requirements. If insufficient money is provided to cover present costs, a reduction in services will result. There are no non-service expenditures available to be trimmed.

Emergency Preparedness:
Presentations from VFRS Emergency Preparedness staff and review of the Emergency Plan binders for VFRS halls assured the Committee that VFRS is well prepared to deal with a major emergency in the City. A presentation from the Emergency Planning Coordinator, Risk and Emergency Management, City of Vancouver, assures us that the City of Vancouver is organizing carefully to deal with a major catastrophic event.

The Committee is concerned about the adequacy of information given to the public about the City's plans. It is particularly concerned that the public is likely to be unaware which radio stations are designated to broadcast official information and instructions in the event of a disaster. Further, the Committee could not ascertain if such broadcasts would actually be made. The Committee recommends that this system be tested so the public learns which stations to listen to in event of disaster and what official broadcasts will sound like.

The Committee is unsure about the integration of roles and jurisdictions of the City Emergency Planning, the Regional Emergency Planning Committee and the provincial emergency programs in the event of a disaster.

The Committee congratulates the City and VFRS on the successful Emergency Preparedness Fair held each May.

Strategic Planning:
The Committee has reviewed a number of elements of the VFRS Strategic Plan 2000, particularly improved community relations and improved internal communications, and determining how the Committee might assist VFRS in achieving each goal. Current work is focused on developing measures of progress toward each goal.

The Committee looks forward to being involved in the development of the VFRS 2004 -06 Strategic Plan

Training and Recruitment:
Training and recruiting issues are of continuing importance as VFRS strives to maintain its standard of personnel. The Committee has been presented with possible alternatives to existing methods of candidate preparation training, and has also discussed succession planning within VFRS.

Emergency Medical Services:
Providing emergency medical services is an increasing part of VFRS activity. The VFRS is usually the first responder to incidents. VFRS personnel are being trained to First Responder level through instructors within the fire crews.

In the three years to February 2002, firefighters have trained 25,000 people in the City through the CPR training program in schools and for community groups.

Communications and Community Relations:
The VFRS 2001 Annual Report had a new format from previous years. It was the first VFRS Annual Report formatted round the goals of the Strategic Plan, and was much more detailed to give the reader an overview of all the operations of the VFRS along with statistical information. The Committee suggested some changes to the 2002 Report to make it more easily understood by a lay audience.

In addition, to its on-going projects, the Committee had two ad hoc projects in 2002:

Deployment of Vancouver's Urban Search and Rescue Team:
The City of Vancouver has developed and maintains the only Urban Search and Rescue Team in Canada that has been certified by the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (Division of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs). The failure of the federal government to deploy the highly skilled and motivated Vancouver USAR Team to an international disaster site continues to be an immense frustration to Team members, as it would provide an opportunity to test their skills as well as provide aid.

The Committee requested the Hon Herb Dhaliwal and Hon Stephen Owen to provide the explanation for the situation. Mr. Owen forwarded letters from the Hon Susan Whelan, Minister for International Cooperation, and from the Hon John McCallum, Minister Responsible for Emergency Preparedness.

In international disasters, Canada's priority is provision of post-disaster aid. The federal government believes that Canadian Search and Rescue teams could not be in place quickly enough to save lives. A plan for the creation of national USAR strategy is being developed as part of a program to guarantee the safety and security of Canadians in time of disaster. As part of this federal government initiative, some funds will be allocated to Vancouver's USAR Team.

Review of the 1994 Terms of Reference for the Citizens' Advisory Committee:
These were reviewed to ensure their currency and continued relevance. The revised Terms of Reference were approved by City Council in June 2002.

The Committee also received a presentation on the Disaster Assistance Program, a volunteer based service coordinated by the Vancouver Park Board and the Vancouver Emergency Social Services team. In 2001, 160 citizens were assisted with food, lodging and clothing. Disaster Assistance kits are provided by the Greater Vancouver Fire Protection Association.

Acknowledgements and Thanks

To VFRS for hosting the meetings and making personnel available to support the committee, and

To Committee members for researching issues and preparing reports for the meetings.

Membership 2001
The committee began the year with the following 10 members:
Joseph Bach Robert Gillan
Chris Baisley ( resigned Nov.) Jean François Landry
Kathleen Bigsby Richard Pomeroy
Larry Campbell (resigned Dec.) Jack Short
Chris Davies Echo Wang

Two resigned late in the year because of job commitments, one in the private sector and one with the City of Vancouver.

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© 2002 City of Vancouver