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Fewer calls in 2020 likely due to pandemic restrictions, fire chief says

The fire department responded to fewer calls last year, with false alarms, motor vehicle collisions and hazardous materials situations seeing the largest drops
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The Moose Jaw and District Fire Department responded to fewer calls last year than 2019, with false alarms, motor vehicle collisions and hazardous materials situations seeing the largest drops.

According to year-end statistics presented during the recent city council meeting, the fire department handled 786 calls last year, compared to 929 the year before, 807 in 2018 and 824 in 2017. 

“We’re down a little bit. That’s good news,” Fire Chief Rod Montgomery told the Express. “I think a large part of it was people being at home (and) not being as mobile. The COVID played a part in it. 

“So really, nothing too dramatic. Obviously, at the end of the day, I’d like to get to zero, but we know that will never happen.” 

2020 data

The data for 2020 compared to 2019 shows:

  • False alarms: 312 / 331
  • Fires: 134 / 119
  • First responder EMS: 44 / 75
  • Hazmat situations: 112 / 158
  • Malfunctioning equipment: five / 83
  • Motor vehicle collisions (MVCs): 64 / 96
  • Carbon monoxide, other: 14 / 6
  • Rescue: 13 / 14
  • Service calls: 39 / 27
  • Electrical, such as power lines: 16 / N/A
  • Rural incidents: 33 / 20

The fire department saved $585,600 worth of property last year from fire, while $667,300 in property was lost to fire. In 2019, it saved $70.4 million worth of property while $2.5 million was lost, and $4.09 million in property was saved in 2018 while $1.2 million was lost.   

Vehicles and false alarms

Montgomery was pleased with the decline in motor vehicle collisions and commended his department’s education co-ordinator for working with police and Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) to educate motorists about distracted driving. Those efforts have convinced people that driving distracted is “not a cool thing to do.”

False alarms continue to be a problem even though those numbers did decline, he continued. The department wants to see those decrease even further and will work to ensure that happens. This includes encouraging people who purchase alarm systems to make themselves the first contact when an alarm occurs. 

Responding to false alarms is not a waste of time since early detection is important, said Montgomery. It’s necessary to have a working smoke alarm since it will wake homeowners at 3 a.m. should a fire occur. However, batteries should be changed often, while new smoke detectors should be purchased every 10 years.

City council adopted a new fire safety bylaw in 2019 that included charging property owners if three false alarms occur at that property. The department has not had to fine anyone yet for breaching the bylaw.

“Those are instances where it’s troublesome in that people aren’t properly locating their devices,” the fire chief said. “Our first goal is to always work with those people. We’ve made contact with some of our frequent flyers … and we’ve been working with them, and that’s helped. That’s still something we continue to work on.”

Montgomery added that having working carbon monoxide detectors is also important since that is a dangerous gas. 

Fires and hazardous materials

While there were 119 calls about fires last year, fewer than 10 were related to house fires, said Montgomery. The rest were due to grass, vehicle, trash or structure fires. 

The category of hazardous materials is misnamed since the department is actually picking up sharps or needles in public places, he continued. The department wants to see this issue moved into general service calls to be more consistent. 

“To categorize them as a hazardous material incident may be a bit of a stretch,” Montgomery said, noting his organization is working with the province to record those issues properly. 

“Needle pick-up is a problem in the community. It raised its ugly head five years ago and has not gone away,” he remarked. 

The fire chief added that homeowners are responsible for disposing of used needles in their homes. The fire department only picks up needles if they pose a danger in public.   

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