Fourteen men formed Ladysmith's first fire brigade in 1904, each issued a wool sweater with "LFD" stitched on the front. The Town of Ladysmith's own history of the department says that sweater was their only protection. The town was built of wood, coal dust lay everywhere, there were no hydrants, and the brigade had two "fire wells" and three heavy hose carts to drag up the hills. More than 120 years later the Ladysmith fire department still runs on the same principle of townspeople answering a call, and it is still recruiting.
How Ladysmith Fire/Rescue hires
Ladysmith Fire/Rescue is a paid-on-call department. Its members are not on shift at the hall; they respond when paged and are paid for the call. The Town says the department protects the Town of Ladysmith, parts of Saltair and the Diamond Improvement District, answers more than 300 calls a year from the hall at 340 6th Avenue, and has mutual aid agreements with North Oyster and with the Cowichan Valley Regional District and its member municipalities, including North Cowichan. Chris Geiger is listed as fire chief.
The hiring process is simple on paper. The Town says the department is always looking for people to join its paid-on-call team, and applicants send a cover letter and a detailed resume to [email protected], explaining how their qualifications and experience fit. There is no posted competition. In October 2026 the Town's current vacancies list carried a lifeguard instructor, a caretaker and a utility operator, but no firefighter posting, because the fire department invitation runs year-round instead.
If you are weighing an application, the practical question is less about the paperwork than about the training standard the department is expected to meet.
The provincial training standard
British Columbia rewrote the rules for departments like Ladysmith's in the last decade, and in 2016 many were still sorting out where they stood. The Structure Firefighters Competency and Training Playbook, brought in by the provincial Fire Commissioner, sets three levels of service: exterior operations, interior operations and full service. A 2016 Prince George Citizen report explained what that means on the ground. A department cleared only for exterior work may not send firefighters into a building where breathing apparatus is needed, so a couch fire is fought through a window; interior and full-service levels require more training, and full service is aimed at departments with full-time firefighters.
The local government, not the department, chooses the level. Dave Balding, fire chief in Fraser Lake, wrote in Fire Fighting in Canada that the old rule had applied an NFPA 1001 standard, adopted in 2003, to career and volunteer firefighters alike, and that many smaller departments had been operating out of compliance as a result. According to the Prince George Citizen, the new standard grew out of a coroner's recommendation after a volunteer firefighter died in Clearwater in 2004.
Old Lizzie, the 1946 pumper and a 13-year paid chief
The equipment history is where Ladysmith's records get specific. The Town says the first motorized apparatus was a 1914 Cadillac Soda Acid pumper known as "Old Lizzie," bought in 1923 and run alongside the hose carts. The Ladysmith Lumber and Shingle Mill burned down in 1920, before she arrived. In 1931 the firefighters dropped Old Lizzie's box onto a 1926 Chevrolet chassis and retired her. That second truck was later sold and stored in a shed, where, the Town notes with some relish, its faulty wiring set it alight and it burned down along with the shed.
After the Second World War the department built a two-storey hall on Roberts Street. In 1946 it bought a pumper from the military base in Abbotsford for $3,165.99, which served until 1975 and still appears in Ladysmith parades. The sources disagree on what that truck was. The Town calls it a 1942 International, a former airport crash rescue vehicle. A 1997 Ladysmith-Chemainus Chronicle obituary, republished by the Ladysmith & District Historical Society, quotes a firefighter from 1946 recalling a new war assets truck and identifies the parade engine as a 1936 International.
That obituary was for Bill Grouhel, who joined the department in 1946 and served 40 years. His father, Joe Sr., had also been chief. After selling his funeral business, Grouhel offered council his services as full-time chief, inspections included, for something like $18,000 a year, and he held the paid post for the last 13 years before retiring in 1986. In 1972 the department opened the hall it still uses, at 6th Avenue and Roberts Street, with room for four pumpers, offices, training rooms and a meeting hall.
Nanaimo's career department and the downtown hall
Up the highway, Nanaimo runs a different model. Nanaimo Fire Rescue employs its firefighters directly, and they are represented by IAFF Local 905; in November 2025 the City and the union ratified a two-year rollover agreement for 2025 and 2026, with raises of 5.0 per cent and 4.5 per cent. The difference shows up on tax bills. The City's 2026 budget summary says Nanaimo Fire Rescue accounts for $513 of the $3,287 in municipal property taxes on an average home, and its comparison table, drawn from BC Stats for 2025, puts the average Ladysmith home's municipal taxes at $2,109 against Nanaimo's $3,210. Fire service is only one line in that gap.
The department's history starts with the Black Diamond Engine Company, founded at a public meeting on May 4, 1878, according to a short history of Nanaimo's fire halls published by the City in 2023. The first station went up at Wharf and Front streets in 1879, with an engine bought from Portland for $700 and thirty volunteers. Its end is dated differently in two City documents: the 2023 history says the station was destroyed in a fire that started in the Royal Hotel in 1894, while the City's 2020 groundbreaking release says it burned down in 1893. The brick replacement at the foot of Nicol Street opened on December 15, 1893, and still stands in private hands.
Fire Station #1 on Fitzwilliam Street
The downtown station at Milton and Fitzwilliam is the fourth to carry the name Fire Station #1. Its predecessor, built in 1967 according to the City's project page (1966 in the 2023 history), had deficiencies and deterioration that significantly affected operations, the City said in 2020. Electors approved the borrowing in May 2018 through an alternative approval process. The budget rose from $17 million to $20 million in June 2020, Kinetic Construction won the contract on June 26 that year, and the City held a groundbreaking on July 29.
Mayor Leonard Krog said at the ceremony that "public safety is everyone's responsibility." Fire Chief Karen Fry described a modern station built around inclusivity and health and safety practices. The new building, constructed to post-disaster standards, houses fire operations, 911 fire dispatch and the City's emergency coordination centre. Crews began moving in during July 2022, the old hall was demolished that September, and the official opening took place on June 21, 2023. If you walk past, look for the red cedar welcoming pole by Snuneymuxw artist Noel Brown, unveiled that day.
Who argued about staffing, and why
The fights over Nanaimo's fire service since then have been about people, not buildings. In December 2022 the City's finance and audit committee unanimously backed hiring 40 firefighters and buying two trucks, CHEK News reported. The first 20 were to start in August 2023 on a rescue pumper at Station #1, at a cost of $1.3 million in 2023 rising to $3.6 million by 2027; the second 20 were to staff an engine at Station #2, across from the Nanaimo Golf Course, from January 2025. Chief Tim Doyle told the committee the department was projected to exceed 9,600 incidents in 2022, nearly 30 per cent more than in 2021, a level a 2017 consultant had not expected until 2030 to 2035.
Councillors framed the vote in different ways. Ian Thorpe, who had campaigned on low taxes, said public safety was his first priority and called the hiring "a must-have" rather than a nice-to-have. Janice Perrino said she hated raising taxes but that the department had to grow with the city. The staff report also warned that so many new firefighters could raise building code issues in the halls.
By April 2023 the argument had moved to medical calls. Councillor Sheryl Armstrong won a vote asking staff to count how many medical calls Nanaimo Fire Rescue answers and what they cost, the Times Colonist reported, citing days when 22 of 30 calls, and 29 of 43, were for medical aid. Doyle said Nanaimo had no agreement with the province's emergency health services to do that work. Councillor Tyler Brown voted against, noting that council had chosen to train firefighters for broader medical care. The same article put the department's 2022 total at 4,341 calls of all kinds, against an operating budget of just over $21 million. That figure and Doyle's 9,600 incidents are hard to reconcile, and neither source explains how it counted.
Nanoose Bay's composite department
North of Nanaimo, the Regional District of Nanaimo runs a third model. The Nanoose Bay Fire Department, established in 1972 and based at 2471 Nanoose Road, is a composite department: a full-time chief, deputy chief and fire safety rescue technician, with about 20 paid-on-call firefighters. It answers 250 to 300 calls a year, from structure fires and road rescue to marine fires and burning complaints, and in 2021 it gained Superior Tanker Shuttle Service accreditation, which the RDN says gives an equivalency to a municipal hydrant system for insurance purposes. Boaters in the same waters share them with Area WG, the torpedo test range off Nanoose Bay.
The hall itself went to a vote. On March 26, 2011, electors in Electoral Area E and parts of Areas F and G were asked whether the RDN could borrow up to $3.2 million to demolish the existing hall and build a new one. They approved it 436 to 168, or 72.2 per cent, on a turnout of 12.3 per cent of 4,916 eligible voters. The RDN referendum page did not post a construction update.
The department's newest engine arrived in February 2025, a Fort Garry Spartan MetroStar replacing a 1999 International. The RDN put its cost at about $1.1 million, paid with $661,450 from Growing Community Funds and $438,550 from reserves, and expects it to serve for 20 to 25 years. The release called the department the Nanoose Volunteer Fire Department, while the RDN's own department page uses Nanoose Bay Fire Department; both names refer to the same hall.
The 1937 Ford hose wagon that carried Ladysmith's hoses and portable pump through the war years is, according to the Town, still in storage, waiting to be restored.
Questions
Is the Ladysmith fire department volunteer or paid?
It is a paid-on-call department. Firefighters are called in when there is an incident and are paid for the time, rather than working scheduled shifts at the hall, which the Town of Ladysmith describes as its volunteer paid-on-call team.
How do I apply to become a firefighter in Ladysmith?
The Town asks applicants to email a cover letter and a detailed resume, explaining how their qualifications and experience are relevant, to [email protected]. The invitation stays open year-round, so there is no fixed recruitment window to wait for.
What area does Ladysmith Fire/Rescue cover?
It protects the Town of Ladysmith, parts of Saltair and the Diamond Improvement District. Mutual aid agreements with North Oyster and with the Cowichan Valley Regional District and its member municipalities, including North Cowichan, bring in help on larger calls.
Who is the fire chief in Ladysmith?
The Town lists Chris Geiger as fire chief and as the contact for media inquiries about the department. He can be reached through the Town's Ladysmith Fire/Rescue page.
How many calls does Ladysmith Fire/Rescue answer each year?
The Town says the department responds to more than 300 calls a year from its hall at 340 6th Avenue. It does not break that figure down by type on its public page.
What training does a paid-on-call firefighter need in BC?
B.C. sets its structure firefighter standard in a playbook with three service levels: exterior, interior and full service. Each local government chooses the level its department delivers, and firefighters train to that level.
Is Nanaimo Fire Rescue a career department?
It is a City department whose firefighters are represented by the union IAFF Local 905, unlike the paid-on-call model in Ladysmith. In November 2025 the City of Nanaimo and the union ratified a two-year agreement covering 2025 and 2026, with raises of 5.0 and 4.5 per cent.
When did the new downtown Nanaimo fire hall open?
Crews began moving into the new Fire Station #1 at 666 Fitzwilliam Street in July 2022, and the official opening was held on June 21, 2023. The building also houses the 911 fire dispatch centre and the City's emergency coordination centre.
How much did the new Fire Station #1 in Nanaimo cost?
The City's approved budget was $20 million, raised from $17 million in June 2020. Borrowing was approved by electors in May 2018 through an alternative approval process.
Does Nanoose Bay have its own fire department?
Yes. The Nanoose Bay Fire Department, run by the Regional District of Nanaimo from 2471 Nanoose Road, has a full-time chief, deputy chief and fire safety rescue technician, plus about 20 paid-on-call firefighters.
What happened with the Nanoose Bay fire hall referendum?
On March 26, 2011, voters approved borrowing up to $3.2 million to demolish the old Nanoose Bay fire hall and build a new one. The vote passed with 436 yes and 168 no, on a turnout of 12.3 per cent.
Sources
- Ladysmith Fire/Rescue, Town of Ladysmith
- Our History: Ladysmith Fire/Rescue, Town of Ladysmith
- Current Vacancies, Town of Ladysmith
- Heaven just Gained a Fire Chief, Ladysmith & District Historical Society (from the Ladysmith-Chemainus Chronicle), 1997-01-21
- Volunteer firefighters' clearance to enter buildings put on hold, Prince George Citizen, 2016-12-02
- Matching expectations to department resources, Fire Fighting in Canada
- 2026 Budget Quick Facts, City of Nanaimo, 2026
- Fire Station #1 Replacement, City of Nanaimo
- Groundbreaking ceremony takes place for Fire Station #1, City of Nanaimo, 2020-07-29
- Nanaimo's Firehalls: A brief history, City of Nanaimo (Nanaimo Historical Society newsletter), 2023
- Nanaimo City Council gives preliminary approval for 40 new firefighters, CHEK News, 2022-12-02
- Nanaimo questions spending on firefighters responding to medical calls, Times Colonist, 2023-04-23
- City of Nanaimo and IAFF Local 905 reach two-year collective agreement, City of Nanaimo, 2025-11-27
- Nanoose Bay Fire Department, Regional District of Nanaimo
- 2011 Nanoose Bay Fire Hall Referendum, Regional District of Nanaimo, 2011-03-28
- Nanoose Volunteer Fire Department Receives New Fire Engine, Regional District of Nanaimo, 2025-02-20
