Six new recruits were welcomed to the Ucluelet Fire Rescue (UVFR) team last week.
The 2022 recruit class Jamie Pleune, Fionn Greene, Dan Lehr, Neil Lounsbury, Trent Larson and Dominique Bouchard lift Ucluelet’s fire and rescue squad up to 22 members.
“It’s a good, healthy number. They bring a good cross-section of really relevant skills,” said Fire Chief Rick Geddes, who has 22 years of firefighting service under his belt.
Within the recruits there’s a millwright, an aircraft maintenance guy, a pilot, someone who is high angle and confined space rescue certified, and one individual with previous firefighting experience.
“We’re quite excited about the future,” said Geddes.
In 2021, nine members of the UFR team completed air brakes training as well as a technical rope rescue certification thanks to a grant from the Fire Chiefs Association of B.C. and this coming March, Geddes says they will work alongside Parks Canada and the Tofino Volunteer Fire Department to undergo Wildfire training.
“A couple members are almost finished the Firefighter Level II certification, which is the universal standard for firefighter qualifications,” Geddes went on to note.
Longtime Ucluelet resident Mike Martin was named Firefighter of the Year.
“It’s tough to pick that out of this bunch, but Mike really did a great job of elevating his commitment level to training. He really was able to nail off a lot things that he needed to get done. He’s always bringing the coffee when we do training. It’s the little extra things that really make a difference,” Geddes told the Westerly.
Martin joined UFR about six or seven years ago after witnessing an incident with his Uncle where paramedics had to be called.
“It’s a great honour to be named Firefighter of the Year, but everyone on the team deserves a pat on the back,” said Martin.
The UFR had a record-breaking year in 2021, responding to 173 calls for service; an uptick from 114 calls in 2020 and 148 calls in 2019.
“There was a lot more accidents on the road and more people in town. I think that impacted the ratio,” he said.
While the annual UFR Valentine’s Day dinner fundraiser is put on hold this year, Martin said to keep an eye out for monthly community engagement socials at the fire hall or around town.
“And welcome to the team new recruits! It’s awesome. They look like a great team and I’m looking forward to getting to know them better.”
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