ATHABASCA – Town of Athabasca firefighters responded to more calls in 2020 than ever before — 116, one more than the previous high mark in 2015.
Fire chief Travis Shalapay presented his year-end report to Athabasca town council Jan. 19, pointing out that despite a slow first quarter, numbers started to increase in the second and third quarter, partly due to an increase in medical assist calls.
Shalapay’s statistics showed an increase from 10 such calls in 2019, about the five-year average, to 26 in 2020.
“The most significant increase is on the medical call side,” Shalapay told council. “I will say that these calls were not frivolous, these were calls where EMS definitely needed assistance.”
These included 13 falls, five cardiac arrests, and seven others that included overdoses and mental health calls, including one incident where a man reported someone was trapped underground beneath the stage at River Front Park. Fortunately, this was not the case.
Coun. Dave Pacholok asked for a little more clarity on medical assistance calls, and what the protocol was in those instances where firefighters are backing up EMS, or when they arrive at a call before EMS gets there.
“Our primary job is just to kind of steer the scene and to stabilize the patient and wait for EMS, so we have select individuals that have a little more training than others,” Shalapay said. “We do have a scope of practice, but we're not there to replace EMS in any way shape or form, it's primarily just to do the right thing and to be that first response when needed.”
Coun. Rob Balay was curious about how billing works when firefighters are called to assist EMS, and whether there is any revenue gained from that.
Shalapay noted that while there is no direct remuneration, there is a reciprocal relationship there.
“There are fringe benefits that we do receive from Alberta Health Services. They do pay for medical training and they do give us an equipment grant that we put toward rescue and medical equipment,” he said, and added that EMS is also on medical standby for fire calls, and will often treat firefighters for minor injuries on the scene.
Overall, Shalapay noted 60 per cent of all response calls in 2020 were within the Town of Athabasca, while 23 per cent were within the county, and 17 per cent were under provincial jurisdiction, namely motor vehicle collisions on area highways. There were 15 of those, with three more in town and two others in the county.
In 2019, 50 per cent of the calls responded to were within town borders.
In addition, Shalapay also reported 34 alarm calls; 12 structure fires; one vehicle fire; and three wild land fire calls. There were also five hazmat calls to deal with dangerous goods; one ATV accident; four service calls or bylaw complaints; and four smoke investigations.
Shalapay also commented on how the pandemic has been a detriment to training for local firefighters, and how it has been challenging to deal with requirements for additional PPE. He also noted the Alberta Fire Chiefs Association is lobbying the provincial government to prioritize firefighters in the schedule for vaccinations.
On the upside, the department has a full roster with 25 members. Nineteen are active, which is up by five in the last year, and six have more than 10 years of service. Selective recruitment is still ongoing, he said, and getting new members trained up to a basic level is a priority.
The Friends of Athabasca Fire/Rescue Society, the non-profit group that fundraises on behalf of the department, is also very active again. Shalapay noted the society has been part of the organization for a long time and is responsible for helping the department expand into road rescue, as members fundraised for the extrication tools and the original rescue truck to make those services available.
“Thank you and all your members for the fine work you do,” said mayor Colleen Powell. “I don't think the town really knows how much you guys do.”
