Vernon fire chief answers Kelowna call

Roger Knox - Vernon Morning Star Published: November 13, 2010 12:00 PM
Vernon’s fire chief is moving south.  Jeff Carlisle has been named new fire chief of the Kelowna Fire Department, effective Jan. 4, 2011.  “It was an unexpected opportunity that just surfaced,” said Carlisle Friday morning. “I took a look at the Kelowna Fire Department, it has a great reputation in a great city, there’s good leadership in the city and it’s aligned with my personal and professional goals (to run a bigger centre with more responsibilities).  “I thought it was a great opportunity, I took a run at it and became the successful candidate which I’m quite happy about.”  Carlisle came to Vernon following a recruiting process in 2008, and has more than 36 years of fire service including nearly a quarter-century with the Canadian Forces.  He was regional fire chief in Wood Buffalo, Alta. prior to moving to Vernon. During his time in the North Okanagan, Carlisle drew controversy with his plan of putting professional firefighters in the Okanagan Landing hall. He admits the controversy played a minor role in his decision to seek the Kelowna position.  “It wasn’t a primary consideration,” said Carlisle. “There’s a lot of controversy around the fire department here in Vernon and the current service deployment model. I have to be honest, that was part of the decision but not the sole reason. I’ll go back to what my personal and professional goals are, that’s the primary reason.”  Vernon Professional Firefighters Association president Brent Bond blamed Vernon council for the chief’s departure. “Chief Carlisle is obviously an educated and talented person and when he continually ran into road blocks put up for him by city council, he exercised his options to go somewhere else where they’re more progressive,” said Bond.

Vernon Mayor Wayne Lippert said he had no hard feelings toward Carlisle and his decision to take the Kelowna post, and was pleased with the job Carlisle did in his two-plus years in Vernon.  “We were happy with the improvements he made,” said Lippert. “We had challenges and he handled them well as far as looking after the services and increasing the services to meet the needs of the citizens of Vernon. “He worked well with council to manage budgets and made sure the fire department was providing those services while being financially responsible at the same time.”  Carlisle had nothing but praise for Vernon Fire Rescue Services and the Vernon volunteers, calling them “extraordinary.”  “These people are committed to providing the best service to the public,” he said. “They supported me and it was a privilege being fire chief here, even if it was only for a short period of time. “They’re nothing but quality people that respond to emergencies and needs of the citizens of Vernon.”

In Kelowna, Carlisle will oversee the strategic decisions of the 117 full-time personnel and 59 paid on-call volunteers, as well as the regional emergency response plan. The Kelowna fire department’s operating budget in 2010 is $11.7 million.  Carlisle will remain chief in Vernon until he leaves for Kelowna in the new year.  Lippert expects to post the job and see what comes up. “The Okanagan is a place a lot of people want to move to,” said Lippert. “Vernon has a fair-size fire department.”