New Toronto Fire Chief Says Merger with EMS Eyed

After just three days on the job, Toronto's new fire chief took the stage Thursday to announce his mission to find "a better way" for the city's beleaguered fire service, focusing on cost-effective service improvements and perhaps even a merger with EMS.

"We understand the financial issues (faced by the City of Toronto). We have to respect that and say: Is there a better way?" newly minted Fire Chief Jim Sales said during a media conference at the Canadian National Exhibition on Thursday morning.

"The status quo ... is not an option. It just isn't."

The comments come after a difficult few years for Toronto Fire, which has faced criticism from several quarters over its management style and slow response times. Critics included KPMG, the consulting firm that produced a core services review for the city in 2011.

Last year, budgetary issues forced Toronto Fire to defer hiring two recruiting classes (typically about 40 recruits each) and increase the number of vacant positions in the fire department from 64 to 132 as a way to save money.

Last month, Toronto's community development committee voted in favour of approving the launch of a new recruitment class this September. Those 40 recruits will eventually fill the positions of firefighters who have left the service.

Ed Kennedy, president of the Toronto Professional Firefighters Association, said the recruiting class, though a step in the right direction, would not satisfy the immediate need for new hires - and "that's a serious concern to public safety and firefighter safety."

Currently, Toronto Fire is down nearly 130 firefighters from the city-approved total of 3,176 staff, which includes firefighters, managers and administrative staff.

Sales, however, said he planned to wait until a Toronto Fire service review is completed this fall before making any decisions about deployment. Once he sees the review, he said, the service will need to review "every single truck in every single location" to determine the most "efficient" route forward.

Asked whether he would follow on KPMG's recommendation to merge with EMS, as some other Canadian fire departments have, Sales said: "I'm not opposed to anything that improves service for citizens."

But "one size doesn't fit all," he added. "You've got to build a model that fits this city. We need a 'Made in Toronto' solution."

With files from Robyn Doolittle

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