Image

February 12, 2015

Petrolia/North Enniskillen firefighters at the scene of an accident in 2014. The chief has asked the fire management committee to consider making his job full-time to deal with increasing demands from the province.

 

The chief of the Petrolia/North Enniskillen Fire Department says it is time for a full-time chief.

Lawrence Swift talked with the fire management committee – made up of politicians from both Petrolia and Enniskillen which fund the department – recently.

Petrolia Councilor Joel Field, who is the head of the committee, says over the years the province and the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office has made more demands on volunteers including “more paperwork and more fire prevention inspections which have just got bigger and bigger.”

Field says the local department has worked with local rest homes and group homes on their fire plans which are now required by the province and it has taken a lot of time.

“The fire marshal has said in the past …we’re moving away from volunteer fire chiefs,” says Field. Swift agrees.

The chief took two weeks of his vacation working with other firefighters to help nursing and rest homes compile their Life Safety Plans. “It is a new requirement this year and is something that needs to be done for the safety of vulnerable occupants,” Swift tells The Independent noting it is a legal requirement now.

“While were carrying on as volunteers the expectations of the requirements are stretching us pretty thin. We have some very dedicated people, we calculate firefighters do 8,000 hours of work every year in the community. That’s an awful lot of work when you have your own job on top of that.”

Swift says if there was a full-time employee on hand those types of task would be done quicker.

Councilor Ross O’Hara, who is also on the fire board, says he heard the same thing the last time he was a member of council. “It’s a big commitment…and every year it will be bigger. Do we need it? I’m not sure if we do or if we don’t,” he told councilors Monday. “I was on council 11 years ago and was told the same thing then. It would be good, but it is a matter of dollars and cents.”

Swift suggested to the committee he could first take on the position part-time in 2015 and eventually become full time by 2017. He also suggested the chief’s salary should be about $90,000.

O’Hara says once benefits are added in that cost could climb to $120,000. Mayor John McCharles adds other items, such as vehicles and support staff, could follow boosting the fire budget higher.  “There is going to have to be a lot more discussion before this moves forward.”

The fire management board is working on a joint meeting between Petrolia and Enniskillen council to talk about the issue. Petrolia foots 60 per cent of the $288,361 budget and Enniskillen pays 40 per cent. A date has yet to be set, but O’Hara says, “both councils will have to be on side” if the chief’s job turns into full-time employment.

 

 

Share This

Image
Front Page

ICYMI: Record-breaking crowd at Alvinston Rodeo

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Like the movie says; if you build it, they will come. The Alvinston Pro Rodeo committee brought in larger stands hoping to accommodate visitors to the three-day event. Saturday night, those stands were filled and there were still people looking for seats according to Chairman Dan Cumming. Here’s just some of the action from the event:

Read More

Image
Front Page

Lambton Public Health issues first heat warning of the summer

June 20, 2025

FROM LAMBTON PUBLIC HEALTH With the prediction of hot and humid weather expected to start on Saturday,June 21 and continue into next week, Environment and Climate Change Canada is issuing a HeatWarning for Lambton County. Heat warnings are issued when two or more consecutive days of daytime maximum temperatures areexpected to reach 31°C or warmer and nighttime minimum temperatures are

Read More

Image
Front Page

Rural bus service starts making stops in Wyoming Monday

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Before there was money to bring a bus into Wyoming, Susan Mills was answering questions from residents about a new rural transit system. The Town of Plympton-Wyoming became a partner in the rural transit system called Huron Shores Area Transit earlier this spring. But service didn’t begin immediately. Lambton Shores, which runs the system, and its partners,

Read More

Image
Front Page

Why spend $20K to study a bridge to nowhere: McEwen

June 20, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Plympton-Wyoming Deputy Mayor Netty McEwen says it doesn’t make sense to spend $20,000 to study a bridge that goes nowhere. Paul daSilva, Director of Public Works, in a report to council June 11, suggested spending $40,000 to do Municipal Environmental Assessments on two low-traffic bridges, one on O’Brien Road, the other on Elmsley Road. “I took a

Read More