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Abbotsford men’s rugby teams have made huge strides in the second half of the season A27
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STOP THE DUMPING A7 Farmer irked by the truckloads of trash he picks up voluntarily in his area Abbotsford Fire Rescue Services personnel assist paramedics during a call in the Abbotsford area.
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Half of fire response involves medical issues
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In 2013, only five per cent of fire service calls related to fires
Alex BUTLER Abbotsford News
Of all the incidents that Abbotsford Fire Rescue Service (AFRS) responded to in 2013, nearly half were related to medical issues. AFRS released its annual report to council on March 10, showing that 48 per cent of calls involved health and medical problems. About five per cent of the department’s response were to fires with property loss. Abbotsford’s fire chief Don Beer said the increased response to medical issues and a lower percentage of fires has long been a trend for fire services across the country. He said although only five per cent of calls currently involve fires MAZDA 3
in Abbotsford, it’s never been more than 15 to 20 per cent in the last 20 years. Last year, there were 88 structure fires, of which 50 were homes, 13 were apartments and townhouses and 12 were barns. Other fires included vehicles, grass, power poles and dumpsters. In comparison, there were 2,779 responses to medical incidents – the most common being breathing problems at 634, followed by non-trauma fainting or unconsciousness at 454, and chest pains at 423. The province-wide agency BC Ambulance Service (BCAS) responds to all medical calls, but as fire departments remain under municipal
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control, their level of response to emergencies, medical or otherwise, is set out by local governments in fire service bylaws. Though Abbotsford firefighters attend many medical calls, they actually respond to fewer than some neighbouring communities. Provincially, fire service support to the BCAS is determined by categories. Abbotsford uses a modified level B response, meaning firefighters respond to immediate life-threatening injury or illness incidents. In communities including Burnaby and Vancouver, the fire departments support BCAS at a level A, meaning that fire crews attend all the incidents to which ambu-
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