One day in 1987, Rob Byers was in the middle of his shift at the family business when he was suddenly called away to face a structure fire on Plum Point Road.
“I was the first one to the hall, and I'd only been on (the Ramara Fire Department) for a week, maybe two weeks, and the chief was there at the time and he said, 'There you go, jump in the truck!'” recalls Byers with a smile.
It’s been 39 years since that day. Throughout that time, Christmas dinners have been missed, friendly gatherings have been interrupted and, at times, as family members arrived home, Byers would be rushing out the door, uncertain of what he might face and how long he would be away from home.
Taken back to his first call as a firefighter, the current district fire chief is reminded of his commitment to the community.
“I like doing what I do for the department and giving back to the municipality and family and friends,” he says.
It’s not a job for him. Generously, Byers compares his service as a volunteer firefighter to a hobby.
He mentions the times he stayed up all night fighting a blaze and then went straight to his son’s hockey tournament after.
He also laughs about being the brunt of jokes when fellow crew members accuse him of sleeping in his clothes because he is often the first one at the hall when a call comes in.
“The strength in the volunteers, in my opinion, is if you do make that call and you happen to be down in Val Harbour or Bayshore or wherever ... chances are there’s a firefighter right around the corner,” says Byers.
He recalls an emergency situation in Lagoon City where an infant needed CPR. There was a firefighter living nearby who responded quickly, he recalled.
Over the decades, Byers has seen members come and go and four different chiefs have headed the department. He has seen equipment upgraded; three tanker trucks, four pumpers and five rescue trucks now compose the fleet, explains Byers. The service itself has also expanded to include various ambulance assists.
He proudly says Ramara was one of the first departments in Simcoe County equipped for ice water rescues.
In the 1980s they used a hovercraft. Now, the crew is fully equipped with an enclosed airboat with GPS and a drone to help navigate.
“When I get a call, I’m going through my head, 'OK, what are we going to need?' And just try and pre-plan," says Byers of the thought process.
There’s a balance between bringing the apparatus needed for a call – such as a marine rescue – and not wasting time overdoing it, he conceded.
While modern technology has helped make things more efficient, cultural changes have improved the standards.
It’s about properly preparing each member for the job they will do and ensuring the community is getting a high-calibre emergency response service, says Ramara Fire Chief Tony Stong.
The firefighters are not unaware of a common misconception — that a volunteer department doesn’t operate at the same level as a full-time career department.
“That’s done the whole system a disservice with that (sentiment),” says Stong. "The reason I say that is because I truly know the value of the volunteers here and the input they put in and the training.”
Of the 92 people in Ramara's fire department, only three are paid staff members: the fire chief, the deputy, and the recently added fire prevention officer.
A career fire department means there are people stationed for shifts at the fire hall. For a volunteer service, volunteers typically have full-time jobs outside of their service and can be called in at any time.
As a result, the most difficult thing is managing response times and the availability of volunteers, said the chief.
"There are days when we have low turnout calls and you're juggling firefighter burnout versus getting enough people out to calls," explained Stong.
He says firefighters must deal with about 500 calls each year, which Ramara has "hovered at" for several years now.
Facing the reality that volunteers first need to get to the hall, Stong says the high quality training they receive helps mitigate this challenge.
Operational guidelines create a "methodic response" so firefighters know what to do in a split second. They build muscle memories, Stong explained.
One goal is to be fully dressed in their gear within 90 seconds. Byers has seen some members ready in 20. There’s no lack of motivation from the volunteers, said the chief.
“The level of training here, I would say, is second to none,” says Stong.
It involves medical training and physical, agility training. There is also an aptitude test, which is a Grade 12 equivalency, notes Stong.
These transferable skills are provided to volunteers for free. The trade-off is 120 hours of their time before they can answer a call.
Ramara established this certification process in 2004. Ontario legislation recently made it mandatory, which adds stress on some volunteer departments.
The training Byers received in 1987 involved a weekly meeting. Every Wednesday the crew would go over different topics, such as pump operations.
“It is a bigger commitment now. I think that’s why we tend to get more young people because ... sometimes it’s a stepping stone,” explains Byers.
The free training may be a practical choice for those who want to pursue a career in fire services. Pre-service firefighter training through an Ontario college ranges from $11,000 to $16,000.
Stong understands how socio-economic changes have shifted the face of volunteerism, which also impacts the fire department.
“People have to work multiple jobs in order to pay and afford groceries and their rent, so finding that time for commitment is incredibly hard for volunteers now,” he says.
Availability is also a big part of recruiting members. Emergencies have no rest time; the fire department must be ready 24/7.
What Ramara gains from running its fire service on volunteers, is saving millions of dollars.
Aware of the benefits of a full-time career department, the fire chief says it’s just not affordable for a smaller municipality such as Ramara.
The people are the most valuable resource, he says, and the expectations of them are high.
With elevated standards comes more support systems. Mental health topics are not taken lightly and the firefighters support each other with open discussion and debriefing, said Stong.
The calls with lasting impacts are often the ones that involve someone a firefighter knows, explains Byers.
These encounters happen more often in smaller communities.
Byers recounts responding to a collision where an injured person called his name from the stretcher. He said he has had to learn to balance his emotions with the task he was trained to do.
“I think it’s just that we’re showing up to usually somebody’s worst nightmare, so you’re trying to do your job as efficient as you can and with compassion for them,” says Byers.
Peer supports, like Boots on the Ground, and programs provided by the municipality such as Before Occupational Stress Training, keep these conversations in the light. Byers and Stong also stress the value of debriefing.
What hasn’t changed since Byers’ first day is the familial culture within Ramara’s fire department.
“There is that sense of belonging and being a member of this,” says Stong.
New members are also encouraged to bring family to orientation.
“It’s not just the volunteers in it; the whole family is in it,” says Byers.
Yet something he tells new recruits now is something Byers still lives by: “Try not to take your work home with you,” he says.
The phrase easily juxtaposes an important foundation about volunteer fire services like Ramara’s. When an emergency happens, it could be a neighbour getting up from the dinner table, rushing to the rescue.