Oak Bay Fire Hall
N 48° 25.758 W 123° 18.792
10U E 476831 N 5364064
Located at 1703 Monterey, Oak Bay, BC
Waymark Code: WM2BHW
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 10/07/2007
Views: 68
Oak Bay Fire Department
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.
A brief history about the fire department;
The Oak Bay Fire Department was formed in 1938 by the hiring of 11 members who worked more than 120 hours per week. Prior to this date, the City of Victoria was responsible for taking care of fires within Oak Bay. The department has grown over time to serve the community in which it protects in many ways and so too has our membership, with the formation, and evolution of our Union. Thanks to the forming of a union in 1969, members of the International Association of Fire Fighters (Local 1856) and affiliation with the British Columbia Fire Fighters Association, the work conditions and hours have greatly been improved.
The city of Oak Bay is approximately 5 square miles and has a population of 18,300+ residents. Our call volume is approximately 1,200 + annually.
Oak Bay is home to some of the most prestigious homes in the capital region. Located in the area called the "Uplands" are multi-million dollar waterfront homes which span the entire distance along Beach drive.
Beach Drive surrounds two thirds of our municipality. Houses' in these prestigious areas have an acre or more of property which is unusual for homes in a city location and are home to the elite, many TV, sports and music personalities. Oak Bay Professional Firefighters Union also protects the Uplands and Victoria Golf Courses', the Victoria Yacht Club and Oak Bay Marina. Our borders are form Harling Point (known as Chinese Cemetery) along Foul Bay road to the University of Victoria, intersecting the City of Victoria and Saanich Municipalities along the way.
Our 21 member local's call volume is averaged 1200 calls per year, and the response varies from Fires, to MVA's and First Responders.
Paid or Volunteer: Paid
EMS Involvement: yes
Has 911 Dispatch: yes
Average Alarms Per Year: 1200
Related Website: [Web Link]
Physical Address: 1703 Monterey Ave Oak Bay, BC Canada V8R 5V6
Rating:
Has Emergency Call Box: Not Listed
Has Emergency Siren: Not Listed
Has Fire Pole: Not Listed
Number of Firetrucks: Not Listed
Number of Emergency Staff: Not Listed
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