DIDSBURY - Loss of confidence in the fire chief and lack of standard operating procedures are among the safety concerns behind the resignation of five Didsbury Fire Department firefighters, according to an assessment report partially released today.
In early June 2018, Caliber Planning was contracted to conduct an assessment of the Didsbury Fire Department (DFD), in response to letters of concern submitted by 16 department members.
The Town of Didsbury released portions of the report on July 25 in a press release that noted nine “situations” that were reported including:
• Didsbury Fire Department (DFD) chief often responds alone in Unit 310 to alarms to conduct size up. There is a safety issue with responding alone and this may not be the best practice in the community.
• Fire hall not being properly utilized nor maintained by DFD personnel.
• DFD not aligned with Town of Didsbury administration.
• Fire chief and Protective Services manager "try" to hold weekly meetings but are often bumped due to workloads.
• DFD lacking standard operating procedures, job descriptions, running orders and code of conduct.
• DFD chief lacks human resource management experience and conflict resolution skills.
• Deputy chiefs have lost confidence in the chief and seem to be undermining his authority.
• Officer core have "concerns with" chief's ability to manage an emergency scene.
• Half of current roster of firefighters expressed displeasure with current chief.
The release also included Caliber Planning’s recommendations to rectify the concerns.
After an in-camera discussion during the July 24 council meeting, council approved a motion to accept the recommendations of the assessment report. The motion also directed administration to publish and act on those recommendations “with the utmost haste” and report back to council with regular progress reports.
Administration is now working with the fire chief to develop a plan of action to accomplish the recommendations from the report.
CAO Harold Northcott says the first order of business is to ensure proper documentation is in place for the department's operation.
"Running orders, Standard Operating Procedures, a Code of Conduct and job descriptions ... all other Town of Didsbury departments have these," said Northcott in the release. "It is critical that these documents be in place for the Didsbury Fire Department to ensure efficient, safe and clear operating standards for all fire members."
Also during the July 24 meeting, council passed a motion directing administration to employ the services of an independent party to conduct a complete safety audit of the Didsbury Fire Department and return a report outlining the results of that Safety Audit to Council no later than October 1, 2018.
