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OTTAWA — The Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs says it’s time for Ottawa to stop studying the idea of a national forest fire co-ordination agency and take action.
The organization’s president wants the federal government to take inspiration from the U.S. Fire Administration to establish a similar office in Canada.
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The U.S. office is part of Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, but Ken McMullen says a Canadian version could be simpler and less costly.
He said the proposed fire administration office, which could be staffed by one or two people, would ensure that personnel and equipment are appropriately dispersed across the country in the event of wildfires.
It would also allow security and fire services to have a seat at the table when relevant policies are being discussed.
The Canadian government has been studying the possibility of creating a national disaster response or co-ordination agency ever since the record-breaking forest fire season in the summer of 2023, and McMullen said it’s time to start making decisions.
This year could also go down in history as one of the worst in terms of fires.
“We will call it whatever they want us to call it,” McMullen said of the proposed office. “We just need it to start.”
He said the information needed to create an agency is already there.
“We just have to get moving and make decisions,” said McMullen, who is also fire chief in Red Deer, Alta.
McMullen said fire officials could be involved in helping to develop different areas of policy, and cites Ottawa’s housing initiatives as an example.
“We hear things like, ‘we need to build more, we need to build faster, and we need to build cheaper,'” he said. “The fire chiefs, what we don’t hear in that is we need to build safely.”
He believes the April federal election and the arrival of a new prime minister have caused delays.
The ACCP has not yet met with new Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski, but has been in contact with her office.
The Department of Public Safety told The Canadian Press that Olszewski “will work closely with her cabinet colleagues to explore and advance options to improve co-ordination and response capacity at the federal level.”
Over the past two years, Ottawa has studied various models that exist around the world and met with emergency management experts, the department added.
“These preliminary discussions have revealed that any solution must reflect the realities of the Canadian federation, including the leadership of provinces, territories, local communities, and Indigenous governments in emergency management,” the statement said.
“The work done to date is helping to shape the approach being developed by the current government.”
Under Justin Trudeau’s administration, McMullen had opportunities to talk with the former prime minister and members of his team, but he notes that “it didn’t happen overnight.”
“It takes a long time to form relationships,” he said.
He said his group had been “extremely optimistic” about Trudeau’s willingness to agree to the ACCP’s request to create a national fire management office, but the prime minister’s resignation, the prorogation of Parliament, and election of a new government put the project on hold, he said.
McMullen hopes the issue will move forward this fall when Parliament resumes.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 7, 2025.
Émilie Bergeron, The Canadian Press
