As Caledon’s fire department celebrates 100 years, Chief Dave Pelayo is looking forward to serving the community that has been “our biggest supporters” for the “next century to come.”
The chief said he’s proud of the milestone and excited about the future.
This future includes a new fire station, Camp Molly for young women to learn about a career in the fire service, and a new fire master plan that will guide the department through the town’s growth.
“Growth, modernization, there’s just so much going on and it is a really exciting time now,” Pelayo said.
New fire station coming next year
A tenth fire station in Chinguacousy Road and Tim Manley Avenue area will mark a new milestone for the department which has seen significant growth from the amalgamation of six stations into a single service in 1974 when the Town of Caledon was created.
Pelayo said the department is working with consultants to determine where, based on a growth, a new station should be located.
“We work with our planning department and the community to ensure that we are allocating spaces or land for future fire stations,” Pelayo explained.
He said the new station is expected to become operational sometime next year.
Diversifying the fire department’s workforce
As growth continues, the department is looking to hire more staff, the chief said. His message to new firefighters, he added, is “it’s the greatest job out there.”
“There’s no feeling better than being able to help somebody in your community. Whether you’re doing it as a volunteer or as a full-time firefighter,” said Pelayo, whose career spans 22 years.
The chief also wants to continue working toward “diversifying our workforce” which, according to him, is “around 90 per cent male right now.”
Camp Molly, one of the department’s centenary year activities, aims to encourage more women to join the fire service.
The four-day camp, slated for June, will expose women between the ages of 15 and 18 to a career in firefighting, Pelayo explained.
“It doesn’t matter where you come from or what your background is,” he said. “Newcomers, women — firefighting truly is a job for anybody.”
Until 2003, the department only operated with volunteer firefighters. At full complement, it now has 285 volunteer firefighters and 55 full-time staff, according to Pelayo.
Initiatives the fire department is working on
Pelayo highlighted the regional training centre designation Caledon received from the Ontario Fire Marshall in October.
“This is a huge milestone,” said the chief. “We’re the second fire department in the GTA to get that designation.”
As a regional training centre, facilities across Caledon will be used to conduct fire college courses and standardized training exercises.
“That will allow us to improve training that we’re providing not only to Caledon firefighters, but also firefighters from the surrounding communities,” Pelayo said.
He said Caledon’s firefighters are also “working hard” toward achieving the mandatory provincial certification.
According to the fire chief, the department will continue to focus on planning for growth and has introduced new retention strategies to “keep our firefighters here longer.”
Meeting Caledon’s unique needs
Pelayo says Caledon is “quite large” and “very spread out.” The rolling hills, tree lots and agricultural land present unique challenges, as do rural areas which still rely on tanker shuttles.
The chief said the fire department is also trying to keep up with the town’s growth.
“We’ve got to grow our level of service as the town grows,” said Pelayo. “We’re working towards urbanizing the fire department and getting us in a position so that we can continue to deliver the service.”
According to the chief, his department is working on community risk assessment and a new master fire plan that will guide it through the next 10 years.
Pelayo also said the department responded to a significant amount of motor vehicle collisions last year he called avoidable. He is asking residents to “avoid the excessive speeds, because it really does hurt everybody.”
When asked about centenary celebrations, Pelayo said Caledon Fire and Emergency Services “will be out and about celebrating at community events all year.”
“If you happen to see a firefighter, just thank them for the work they do. Just continue to support us,” the fire chief said.
The town launched a website on the history of firefighting in Caledon to mark the milestone, and issued a call to artists for a 100-year anniversary mural for the department’s headquarters in Caledon east.