Rocky View County (RVC) has hired a new fire chief to fill the position being vacated by Ken McMullen in February.
Randy Smith will start with the County’s Fire Services on Jan. 6, 2014, Grant Kaiser, RVC communications manager, confirmed on Dec. 4.
According to a media report, Smith is resigning from his position with the Innisfil Fire and Rescue Service, located in Ontario, on Jan. 3, 2014.
He has been with the unit since 2011 and served as the fire chief and community emergency management coordinator.
He supervised a full-time and volunteer staff of 110 men and women, according to media reports.
Kaiser stated, “Smith will not be granting media interviews until he has had the opportunity to meet with his team of talented staff and volunteer firefighters, and has had a few weeks of RVC experience under his belt.”
According to Kaiser, Smith has 23 years of experience in the field, including fire chief in Tiny, Ont. and in Terrace, B.C., and as director of emergency services in Iqaluit, Nunavut.
“He has significant experience in fire services, disaster services, and emergency response fields, at the local, provincial, and international level, including work with the American Red Cross,” stated Kaiser in an email to Rocky View Weekly.
He added the County is “pleased to welcome Smith to our team.”
Smith takes the helm at a rocky time for the County’s Fire Services. RVC officials and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 4794 entered into negotiations in the fall of 2010 and began arbitration on Feb. 23, 2013.
The negotiations resulted in changes implemented by the County that saw layoffs, shifts and crew reductions, fire stations being shut down because of lack of staff and increased emergency response times.
Three years ago, Rocky View County Fire Department operated with as many as seven firefighters per shift over a 24-hour period.
Over the course of the past three years, since the fire department unionized in April 2010, the number of firefighters has been reduced to four per shift, on a rotating schedule of one day on, two days off, one day on, four days off for full-time firefighters.
On Feb. 29, 2012, seven full-time firefighters and one chief fire marshal were laid off.
A second group of layoffs were made in June 2013 when 12 full-time firefighters were handed layoff notices.
Kaiser said the County is still in the process of recruiting for the position of general manager of community services, which is the RVC staff member the fire chief reports to.
He stated it will “likely be some months yet before the job is filled.”
The position was vacated by Ted Gard after he retired on Aug. 30.
Responsibilities for the manager of community services include overseeing fire, enforcement, community services and other departments.
Kaiser stated, until the County can hire someone else, the position is being overseen by Rocky View County General Manager of Corporate Services Kent Robinson.
