New Westminster firefighters quickly quashed a couple of fires before they got out of control.
Fire Chief Tim Armstrong said the city’s fire crews have responded to a number of small fires in the past week, including a fire in an unattended suite on the 14th floor of a building on Jamieson Court on March 30 and a second-floor fire in a three-storey building on Griffiths Place on March 29. He said firefighters quickly extinguished the fires, which both started in the kitchen.
“We have been doing our ongoing training program with our crews,” he told council March 31. “That has really paid off.”
In the aftermath of the Jan. 31 apartment fire on Ash Street, New Westminster Fire and Rescue Services established a prevention task force. The fire department’s management and the firefighters union have met to discuss issues such as permitting flexible hours for fire prevention staff to take part in fire preventative initiatives.
Coun. Chuck Puchmayr supports the fire department’s attempt to concentrate fire prevention efforts on vulnerable, multifamily, non-sprinklered buildings in the city. He said the city and the fire department have taken steps to address concerns about aging lowrise apartments.
“The dividends are being paid,” he said. “The citizens of New Westminster are the victors in all of this.”
Puchmayr, who chairs the city’s emergency advisory committee, said the fire department is seeking to provide firefighters with the tools needed to “up the game” and be as efficient as possible.
