Commonage fire costs pursued

By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star  Published: April 10, 2011 1:00 AM

Cost may be the only thing that stops fire service from being expanded into rural parts of the Commonage.  Vernon and North Okanagan Regional District officials met Wednesday to discuss the city possibly providing fire protection to properties outside of its boundary on Commonage Road, Bailey Road and Highway 97.  “We are drawing up the plans of how many properties may be involved so the city can come back with costs,” said Mike Gavinchuk, director for the rural area.  It’s believed there may be about 98 properties, and Gavinchuk insists that any provision of fire protection will depend on the ultimate cost of the service.  “Once we know the numbers from the city, people can vote for it or turn it down,” he said.  Coun. Jack Gilroy believes the city should look at entering into a formal contract with its neighbouring jurisdiction.  “We’re going to have a fire hall at Predator Ridge and that will cut down on the response time to those properties,” he said.  Gilroy also points out that quick action in the rural area could prevent a fire from spreading into City of Vernon  limits.  “Look what happened in Kelowna,” he said of the 2003 firestorm that started in a provincial park but eventually spread into Kelowna.  The city has previously expressed concerns about its fire trucks not being able to use some roads because of different standards in rural areas.  But Gilroy is convinced those risks have been addressed. “There are smaller vehicles and portables pumps,” he said of crews accessing properties.  The only other option for providing fire service to the Commonage is the BX-Swan Lake Fire Department, which is in the same electoral area. But response times from that hall could exceed 20 minutes.  Insurance companies do not recognize an area beyond eight kilometres from a fire hall as having protection. Given that the shortest distance from the BX fire hall to the Commonage is 13 kilometres, a reduction in insurance premiums is not anticipated.