'It puts all Yukoners at risk': Fire Marshal's Office missing a fire marshal

Fire chiefs are sounding the alarm over a lack of staff at the Yukon Fire Marshal's Office (FMO), including a fire marshal. 

The FMO enforces fire regulations, investigates fires and runs 16 volunteer fire halls across the territory.

But it is missing half its usual complement of six staff, including a fire marshal and administrative staffer.

They say the office seems to be struggling with paperwork and equipment repairs.

Jeff Stephenson, president of the Association of Yukon Fire Chiefs, said that's problematic for fire chiefs, who turn to the FMO "anytime we need something." 

He said the three remaining deputy fire marshals have "been trying their best" to replace old or broken down equipment at fire halls.

"But they're way behind," he said. 

Without an administrative staffer at the office, he said the deputy fire marshals are difficult to get hold of.  

Emails are bouncing back with an auto-reply that advises "our response time may range from 14 to 21 business days."

"When we have a new recruit come in, we have to do all the paperwork ... and they've been short admin too, for this last while, and so the paperwork gets way behind," he said. 

The concerns come as wildfire season roars to life.  

"Anything that puts a hiccup in it whether it's not having enough members, or proper equipment, it puts all Yukoners at risk," Stephenson said. 

Ember Fire Academy cancelled, then reinstated

The FMO almost canned its successful women's firefighting program, Ember Fire Academy, this year.

More than 100 women have completed the program since 2014 and a third of them have joined a fire department.

Ember Fire Academy Chief Kiara Adams said she was looking forward to the tenth year of the program until she was told this month that it couldn't go ahead. 

"I was told that it was cancelled because there's never officially been funding for it. The money has to be borrowed from other projects. So this year the FMO didn't feel they could take the money from anywhere to run it," she said.

A week later, Adams said she got another call from the FMO. 

"Now somehow they've found the money to run it, but there's still no official funding in place to run Ember for future years. So that's a bit concerning," she said.

'Perfect storm' of staffing issues 

The Yukon's usual fire marshal, Devin Bailey, said the FMO normally has one administrative staffer, four deputy fire marshals and one fire marshal.

He said there had been "the perfect storm, HR speaking."

Bailey stepped away from his position earlier this year to take an eight-month temporary role with Yukon Wildland Fire Management. 

He said the deputy fire marshal that stepped up to replace him ended up taking a new job elsewhere. 

"And [we're] currently seeking an admin finance person. We've gone through multiple processes to fill that role," he said.

"We are trying the best we can, but as everyone is aware it's a very difficult labour market right now." 

Bailey said the FMO is up to date with its fire safety inspections, and the three remaining deputy fire marshals are working hard to give fire halls the equipment they need.

"But the reality is ... it's getting longer and longer, the wait times, to order and replacement equipment," he said. 

Bailey said the temporary cancellation of the Ember Fire Academy wasn't so much a funding issue as an administration issue. 

He said the program takes "a significant amount of administrative and behind-the-scenes work."  

"I totally agree, and none of the deputy fire marshals would disagree with me, about the value of the program," he said.

"As a director I needed to make some tough decisions about where we're going to be putting resources. And part of that was to postpone Ember, to re-evaluate, so we could focus on things like ensuring that the fire departments had the support to get the training that they need."

Bailey said officials met this week to work out how Yukon Wildland Fire Management can support the FMO while it's looking for new staff.

"The folks that put their names forward to act as as fire chiefs, we value them. The relationship that we hold with them is really important," he said. 

"I'm sure that this will bring some some attention and light to the fact that they're not feeling they're being served to the level that that they expect. I hear their frustrations and I hope that we can just find a way to work together to to ensure that services aren't affected."

'There hasn't been any continuity' 

Stephenson, president of the Association of Yukon Fire Chiefs, said the issues with the FMO stretched back a number of years — not just months.

"It's been a long progression slowly," he said. 

"Over the years the different fire marshals we've had, they've only been in for a short time and left for one reason or another. So there hasn't been any continuity at all and so a lot of things have been dropped along the way."  

He hopes the Association of Yukon Fire Chiefs can have a say in the hiring of a new fire chief and that the Yukon Government will move quickly to add resources to the FMO. 

"I'm scared the [deputy] fire marshals we have now, they are doing a good job but they're gonna get burned out," he said.