Emergency calls rise, union president wants more firefighters hired

Last year broke records for the Moncton Fire Department, and that has the president of the union concerned.

Firefighters from the city's five stations completed 13,613 unit responses to 7,785 emergency calls.

That’s a 17 per cent increase from 2022, another record-breaking year.

It’s also up 40 per cent from 10 years ago.

“What's happening is, as our city grows, there's also an increase in emergencies,” said Capt. Ashley Graham, president of the Moncton Firefighters Association.

“It is taking a toll on some of our firefighters on a physical side and a mental side.”

The emergencies included 1,097 alarms, 223 structural fires, 958 non-structural Fires and 739 motor vehicle collisions.

The department has also increased its scope of practice by attending medical assistance requests, gas leaks, hazardous materials and off-road and water rescues.

“The Moncton Fire Department does need more staff, and I'm not saying that to fear monger for the public. This is just looking at one of the fastest growing cities in Canada right now,” said Graham.

Graham said a third party study done last year recommended an increase of a minimum of 32 firefighters.

“Right now, our city is booming,” said Graham. “We have a lot of high-rise buildings going up, which is excellent. We love seeing the growth here, but the fire department has not grown since 1976.”

City of Moncton spokesperson Isabelle LeBlanc confirmed four new firefighters will be hired in 2024.

That brings the total to 123 including administration staff.

Moncton Fire Department Chief Conrad Landry said city council has approved a master fire plan to look at needs for the next decade.

“Once this will be completed this year, then we will have a plan on how we will increase the staffing, fire halls, fire trucks for the next ten years,” said Landry. “We could always use more staff, but I think this master plan is really going to tell us what are we compared to other municipalities across the country.”

Landry said firefighters are responding to eight to ten drug overdose calls a day.

“Unfortunately, we know when there’s a bad batch of drugs in the city because our call volume increases,” said Landry.

Landry said the daily overdose calls can tie up resources.

“The other thing is the fatigue, the mental fatigue of the firefighters. When you get ten calls like that, it’s getting hard for them to be empathetic.

Graham said the overdose calls can be draining.

“It takes a huge toll. You know, you get empathy fatigue. We become firefighters to help people,” said Graham.

Graham said the overdose calls are not just for homeless people in the downtown core.

“Overdose calls are happening everywhere in the city, in people’s homes and everything,” said Graham. “It’s really hard. Sometimes you have a lot of repeat people and you want to see them get help so it doesn't happen anymore. Unfortunately there are some that do not make it.”

No matter the call, Graham said firefighters always prioritize the safety of the public.

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