Residents of Kicking Horse Mountain Resort will have fire protection for their area in the New Year with services being provided by the Town of Golden until the stand-alone Columbia Shuswap Regional District fire department is operational.
Following approval by the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort residents in an assent process earlier this year, the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) is working with the resort to establish its own fire department.
The resort will construct a fire hall as part of the development of a new operations building, while the CSRD will recruit, train and equip the new fire department. Residents will begin paying for the service in 2025.
Until the standalone department is operational, the Town of Golden Council voted on December 17, 2024, to enter into an agreement with the CSRD to provide interim fire services to the area beginning January 1, 2025. This agreement will continue until the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort Fire Department is fully functioning.
“This is an opportunity as local government and a neighbour to assist our greater township area in positive economic development by applying practical delivery of a well-grounded and professional service, through yet another successful partnership with our regional district,” said Jon Wilsgard, outgoing Chief Administrative Officer for the Town of Golden.
Golden Fire Rescue will respond to fire calls, hazardous material incidents and smoke alarms. The Town of Golden will be reimbursed by the CSRD on a per-call basis for providing the service until completion and staffing of the new fire hall is in place.
“We appreciate the willingness of the Town of Golden to work with us and will continue a mutual-aid relationship with the Town once the new Kicking Horse Mountain Resort Fire Department is fully established,” said Derek Sutherland, the CSRD’s General Manager, Community and Protective Services.
“It’s a great collaboration and we are pleased to officially confirm that residents of the resort will have access to fire protection for their homes in January,” he adds.
Recruitment efforts for the new paid on-call firefighters will take place in early 2025, with the goal of having the new department operational in 2026. Anyone interested in joining the department can email: fire@csrd.bc.ca