The Central Coast Regional District will pursue hiring a local part-time fire services coordinator using surplus budget funds in 2024.
To finance the position, $27,000 will come from the Hagensborg Fire Protection budget and $13,000 from the Bella Coola Fire Protection budgets.
All electoral area directors voted in favour of the allocations.
Area E (Bella Coola) director Jim Ward spoke in favour but not if it meant an increase in taxation.
He said the fire departments need help with training and recruitment.
“I talked to my local fire department and they want to have input,” he said.
Chief administrative officer Curtis Slingerland said he had met with chiefs of both fire departments at the end of last year and planned to meet with them again.
The board also heard from the emergency management coordinator Jessie MacDonald seeking approval for some grant applications.
One is for emergency support services equipment and training for $30,000, that covers 100 per cent.
If successful the money will go toward bolstering the Denny Island emergency equipment sea-can container, foundational training around emergency support services for staff and partner agencies.
A second one is for emergency operations centre equipment and training, $30,000, that also covers a00 percent.
MacDonald said idea is to train a local person, and build local capacity by hiring someone at an entry level.
“They would be supervised by myself,” she said.
When emergencies, such as wildfires or floods occur, it is the responsibility of local governments to respond and set up an emergency operations centre (EOC).
“Our geography is very large and we would look at doing an EOC in person, virtually and a hybrid,” MacDonald said.
The grant would go toward purchasing video conferencing equipment to facilitate remote meetings and the remainder of grant to implement a training program designed for emergency response.
Slingerland said when the CCRD has positions come up in this area if they have given people training the CCRD is not relying on outside people.
The third application is for a Union of BC Municipalities FireSmart grant the Nuxalk Nation would take the lead on, doing the administration and reporting.
It will be regional and benefit the Nuxalk and the CCRD with a fire smart coordinator and a fire smart committee that will act for the entire region.
MacDonald is a former Bella Coola resident who lives in Powell River.
She is in the valley for a couple of weeks to meet with all the emergency responder agencies in person and with the school district, visiting all the schools.
“I will be doing emergency presentations and giving the students household preparedness plans to work on with their families,” she said.
In the spring a wildfire engagement session will be offered for the entire community.
“I met with the Bella Coola fire department last evening and am visiting with the Hagensborg department next Wednesday,” she said.
READ MORE: UBCM funding sparks firefighter training opportunity for Ocean Falls
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