HALIFAX – The Navy is drastically slashing the hours of a firefighting boat in Eastern Canada’s largest harbour.
Starting Monday, the firebird, a firefighting boat that responds to emergencies in Halifax Harbour, will stop being a 24/7 service.
Instead, it will only operate Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
“We’ve looked at when we’ve used the tug, what the contingencies are, where it might be called upon to be used, where we really need it,” said Captain (Navy) Angus Topshee, base commander at CFB Halifax.
“Outside of those hours, we didn’t see the need for it. It didn’t make sense to continue to spend the cost required to have that tug available.”
Topshee said the last time the firebird was used to help extinguish a fire was in 2008. The tug responded to a vessel on fire in Dartmouth and with the help of 35 firefighters, managed to put out the flames.
“Are there scenarios where we could see it being useful? Quite probably. I can imagine things where it would be necessary. Do I think those things are likely to happen? No, I honestly don’t,” he said.
There’s no word on how much will be saved by cutting the firebird’s hours of operation.
Topshee said firefighters are on board all major warships and the firebird will still be on-call. He said there are also other resources available for harbour emergencies.
“We’re quite comfortable if we were to have a fire after-hours that we have sufficient capacity within our existing resources to respond to that,” he said.
The Halifax Fire Department said it has requested the help of the firebird fewer than 10 times in the past six years.
Deputy Fire Chief Roy Hollett said the reduced hours will not have a major impact on the operation of fire crews.
He said the fire department, which only oversees shoreline firefighting, does not rely solely on the firebird.
“When it is available, it’s a great resource. When it’s not, we’ll still adapt to the situation and do something else,” Hollett said.
“There are others out there we could call on. The firebird is one of the many resources we could use or request.”
The Halifax Port Authority said that the changes make no difference to them.
“The Port Authority has a contingency plan in place. In the event of a fire on board a vessel, the Port Authority does not involve the use of the military fire tug,” said Communications Advisor Lane Farguson.
But the news is distressing to federal defence critics, who say the cuts are just another demonstration of what they say is the government’s disregard for emergency services.
“It’s clearly budget driven. We all know fires can occur 24 hours a day. The need for emergency services does not sleep,” said NDP Defence Critic Jack Harris.
“You wouldn’t operate a fire hall from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Why would you treat a fire tug any differently? The fire service is there to protect the lives of personnel on board vessels and property.”
Liberal Defence Critic Joyce Murray said she was disappointed, but not shocked to hear the news.
“I think it’s absolutely wrong. If a fire breaks out, there has to be a fast response because there can be many lives lost,” she said.
“There needs to be a response as quick as possible. It’s insurance.”
Topshee admits there delays will be likely in the event of an after-hours fire.
“It would obviously take us longer than when it’s manned. We don’t anticipate that need. We’ve got other needs which we can deliver that service.”
No layoffs are expected from the cuts.
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