An overview of the Saskatoon Fire Department’s strategic plan for 2023-26 was given by fire Chief Morgan Hackl Tuesday at city hall.
According to the document, yearly incidents have been steadily on the rise for the fire department, reaching 21,852 incidents in 2022 compared with 14,264 in 2018.
Hackl said they’ll be undergoing a risk assessment in 2024 that will identify, analyze, evaluate and prioritize vulnerability, exposures and hazards in the community.
“From this, current mitigation strategies will be reviewed and future co-ordinated efforts will be implemented,” Hackl said.
Mayor Charlie Clark asked how the risk assessment would help the city better respond to homelessness in the city. Hackl said the vulnerability portion of the assessment addresses homelessness, but clarified that each aspect of this assessment impacts the other.
He said the fire department has been more proactive and involved in the vulnerability sector in recent years, but this assessment through partnerships will help them decide how to do things differently.
Hackl noted the best outcome of this assessment would be to share this data with other levels of government to strategize for solutions.
Clark said it’s been important to have the fire department work with city partners to address many of these issues.
“Unfortunately we’ve seen an escalation in some of these challenges. All cities have,” Clark said.
Hackl said there hasn’t been a four-year strategic plan for the fire department for a while, but noted things have changed for the organization.
“SFD’s work has changed so much in the past few years when we look at our safety and well-being work connected to the vulnerable sector.”
He said they’ve seen an increase in calls related to medical issues, overdoses and mental health.
“All of our work over these past few years and going forward is about how we approach things as one city, as a whole community to provide the best outcomes for the residents of Saskatoon.”
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