Sudbury can’t maintain all 24 fire, paramedic stations, report concludes
Sudbury can’t maintain all 24 fire, paramedic stations, report concludes
A review of Greater Sudbury’s 24 fire and paramedic stations has concluded that many of them should be consolidated, a move that wouldn’t affect service levels or lead to layoffs.
That’s the conclusion of a review by a group called Operational Research in Health (ORH) Ltd., which was tasked to review the current situation and determine “the ideal number and location of emergency service stations.”
If all the report’s recommendations were followed, the number of fire and paramedic stations would drop to 13. While buildings would close, the report said no changes to staffing are recommended.
Reviewing fire stations has been controversial in the past in the past in the city, with some areas concerned about the loss of volunteer stations.
A controversial report in 2017 recommended the city hire dozens of new full-time firefighters to equalize response times, but it sparked a huge outcry and was ultimately dropped.
The driving force behind the review is the fact many of the buildings are close to or past their life cycle and repairing or replacing them would cost as much as $43 million over the next decade.
The current review found that nine out of the 24 fire and paramedic stations are ideally located to provide emergency response to the areas they serve.
“Four fire and paramedic stations have the potential to be relocated to provide an overall improved response,” the report said.
“The remaining 11 fire and paramedic stations could be consolidated with minimal impact to response.”
While not supporting all recommendations, city staff said they generally support the plan. Specifically, they opposed consolidating the Chelmsford and Azilda fire stations, because both buildings are in decent shape and such a move would impact response times in Azilda.
“Staff recognize, based on expressed community priorities and known capital investment needs, sustaining 24 fire and paramedic stations is neither practical nor required,” the report said.
“The ORH report describes how the corporation can reduce its asset footprint without impairing service or staffing levels required for meeting council’s service level expectations.”
Most recommendations involve volunteer fire stations, but the report recommends a career station located in Minnow Lake be moved closer to Kingsway Boulevard Falconbridge Road.
“Staff are supportive of the recommendation to relocate Minnow Lake,” the report said.
“This relocation has the potential to benefit response times for both fire and paramedic services.”
For volunteer fire stations, the report recommended the Capreol, Levack, Dowling, Whitefish and Chelmsford Stations should remain where they are.
But several other stations could be combined into one without harming overall response. Those stations are:
- Consolidate Skead and Falconbridge into ideal site for Garson;
- Consolidate Val Caron and Hanmer at current site in Val Thérèse;
- Consolidate Vermilion Lake into Dowling;
- Consolidate Beaver Lake into Whitefish;
- Consolidate Wahnapitae and Coniston at ideal site;
- Consolidate Waters, Lively and Copper Cliff at Anderson Drive; and,
- Consolidate Azilda at Chelmsford.
The report also recommends consolidating the paramedic and fire station in Capreol into one building, since it “would reduce operating costs without impacting staff and response times.”
The review heads to city council Dec. 13. Read the full report here.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
A team of preteen Ukrainian refugees that have been scattered across Europe by war arrived Wednesday in Quebec City, where they'll get the chance to compete in a renowned hockey tournament.
Nearly a year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, community organizers say there is still work to be done to help the thousands of Ukrainian refugees looking to start a new life in Canada while coping with the hardships they've faced coming here.
After a tiny radioactive capsule went missing in the Australian outback, an expert in Canada says the likelihood of the same happening in this country is unlikely, given our strong regulations governing the handling of radioactive materials.
As Black History Month gets underway, Canada Post has unveiled a new stamp honouring Chloe Cooley, a young Black woman who was known to challenge her enslavement in the late 18th century.
As the City of Barrie prepares for extreme cold to move through the area later this week, local shelters are working on expanding space for those in need.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
Hundreds of tenants at a midtown Toronto apartment building have been without heat for a week now, and many are worried with the arrival of bitter-cold temperatures.
Ottawa ranks 45th out of 62 cities across Canada and the United States in a study on downtown recovery, with activity levels at 51 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
While crews have resumed operations in an attempt to open the Rideau Canal Skateway for its 53rd season, an NCC spokesperson tells CTV News Ottawa the canal will not open in time for the first weekend of Winterlude on Friday.
A hearing is underway to determine if Udo Haan is not criminally responsible for the death of his wife Edra Haan, who was found in the aftermath of the 2018 house explosion in Kitchener, Ont.
Chief Mark Crowell made a presentation at a council meeting Wednesday justifying the proposed $214 million budget for the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS).
Gillian Burnett was almost finished her work day on Jan. 24 when she received a terrifying call about her young son. Waylon, 20-months-old, was found submerged in an outdoor pool at a home daycare near Petrolia, Ont.
Following a suicide bomb blast that killed more than 100 people in a mosque in Pakistan’s northern city of Peshawar, community leaders in Windsor-Essex are reminding people these attacks are rare and should not be simply dismissed as a byproduct of living in that part of the world.
Canada's new special representative on combating Islamophobia has apologized for words that hurt Quebecers after leaders in that province called for her resignation.
Montreal police say two men are in hospital Wednesday night with stab wounds after an altercation in a home in the city's Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough.
A new 911 dispatch system in New Brunswick means that now fire departments aren’t getting dispatched to all medical calls leaving residents waiting and first responders in the dark.
More than four months after Hurricane Fiona hit Atlantic Canada, people are still dealing with damaged homes as they wait for help from insurance companies and provincial aid programs.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
Calgary police are looking for suspects involved in an altercation that lasted for approximately an hour, spanned several communities and ended with a gun being fired.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
B.C.'s Ministry of Health is continuing its multi-year trend of paying millions more dollars each year to private surgical centres for the delivery of public health care, CTV News has learned.
Changes to the amount of time the public gets to voice their opinion during Surrey City Council meetings has caused controversy among former councillors.
