The Oak Bay
Fire Department was established in 1937, after the
Municipality ceased contracting with the City of
Victoria for this service. The present fire hall at
1703 Monterey Avenue, now included in the community
heritage register, was built at that time.
The
Department is staffed on a 24 hour a day, 7 day
a week basis by 4 rotating 6-person fire
suppression crews. The Fire Chief is the
Department Head; he normally works a Monday to
Friday shift, and there is also a Fire
Prevention Officer who works a weekday shift as
well.
The
Department has a strong focus on prevention, and
in that regard conducts regular inspections of
structures which are public buildings within the
meaning of the Fire Services Act, not just to
check for hazards, but also to familiarize
themselves with building layouts in order to
provide a more efficient response in the event
of a fire call.
In
addition to their fire-fighting training, all
suppression crew members are also qualified
Emergency Medical Assistant First Responders.
This allows us to respond to medical emergency
calls when requested by the British Columbia
Ambulance Service, as we are often able to
provide a quicker response that can be the
difference between life and death in some
situations.
The Fire
Department also coordinates the Municipality’s
emergency program and would play a key role in
the event of a significant earthquake or other
disaster.
The
Department can be reached at 592-9121. This is
also the number to call if you have an
after-hours public works emergency such as
flooding from a broken water line, or a serious
sewer backup. We will then contact municipal
crews who can respond to provide assistance.
