2019 was a very busy year for the Quesnel Volunteer Fire Department.

Fire Chief Sylvain Gauthier goes over some of the numbers…

“On average we have about 450 calls a year. Last year we hit 520 calls, and out of those calls we had 73 medical calls, 80 motor vehicle incidents, 25 fires (structures and vehicles) that sustained dollar loss, 153 fire alarms, either commercial or residential, which was a big increase, and 12 grass fires.”

Gauthier says the total dollar loss was around 750 thousand dollars, compared to more than 10-million dollars saved.

He says they had a couple of major residential fires in 2019.

Gauthier says their 37 members average around 200 hours of volunteer service a year.

He says they also have six new recruits starting later this month, although he says they can use more volunteers.