Fire season in Ontario is officially underway, and the province is helping firefighters across Ontario with bulking up their workforce with new personnel and equipment.
The provincial government announced late last month that in order to help bolster wildland firefighting crews in Ontario, it was providing one time incentive payments for those working on the front lines against forest and wildland fires on the ground and in aviation, as well as critical support staff. In an announcement made Tuesday, April 2, 2024, the government added more details to their plan to support crews during the 2024 fire season that will see more than 100 permanent jobs created to help crews meet the demands of ever more complex fire seasons, as well as to add more essential equipment to their teams.
“Throughout the fire season, Ontario’s firefighting staff work tirelessly – under very difficult conditions – to keep people, communities and property safe,” said Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry Graydon Smith.
“The start of the fire season is an important time to recognize how important these fire crews are and the brave work they perform to keep the public safe.”
The government’s release explained that the new jobs in the sector will help contribute to building leadership and experience within the wildland fire fighting program with the addition of new, year-round positions that will help support career path opportunities for fire rangers and other staff. In response to increasingly complex and difficult fire seasons both within Ontario and beyond, the government has also expanded the eligibility for standby pay and reimbursement for eligible expenses for training and special safety equipment.
“The government is strengthening emergency preparedness and response by ensuring communities across the province have the resources and equipment they need to prepare for natural disasters and emergencies,” said President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for Emergency Management Caroline Mulroney.
“We are working closely with municipalities, First Nations communities and partners to ensure the people of Ontario are safe, practiced and prepared for the upcoming wildland fire season.”
The Ontario Government also said it’s invested $20.5-million to be used over the next three years to enhance aerial technologies and help increase understanding of evolving fire science and behaviour.
According to the province, last year’s wildland fire season was one of the most challenging Ontario has faced, making these additional changes and investments critical to helping combat wildland fires in the aftermath of a dry winter and fluctuating global temperatures. The government states that 50 percent of all wildland fires are caused by humans, with more than 700 wildland fires reported across the province last year, having burned more than 440,000 hectares of forest, which it says is nearly triple the 10-year average of total hectares burned on the landscape. Ontario itself is also internationally recognized as a leader in wildland fire management and has many resources to fight such fires, which include hundreds of highly trained and skilled staff who support and fight wildland fires, a fleet of specialized aircraft used to suppress wildland fires and transport staff across the province, and 14 fire management headquarters, three attack bases and 11 forward attack bases, two regional fire centres, one provincial fire centre, two regional logistics centres and one provincial logistic centre, seven hangars and one flight training centre.
