BRAMPTON - Andy MacDonald, who was instrumental in bringing Brampton the one-of-a-kind Fire/Life Safety Education Centre in Chinguacousy Park, is this city's new fire chief.
MacDonald has been the deputy chief of Brampton Fire and Emergency Services since 2003. He started with the Snelgrove Volunteer Firefighters more than 30 years ago.
He replaces Terry Irwin who is retiring after 31 years with the city's fire department. MacDonald officially takes over the reins today.
"I am honoured and delighted to take on the role of fire chief for the City of Brampton," MacDonald said.
"It's an exciting time to be chief around here and I'm looking forward to the challenges."
Firefighting isn't something he aspired to as a young man, he said, but it was in his blood. His father, Jack, and an uncle, Lorne Wilson, were in on the ground floor in founding the Snelgrove Volunteer Firefighters in 1958. When he came back home from university in 1977, he didn't have a planned career, so his father told him he should become a volunteer firefighter.
"I did and I was hooked," MacDonald said. "It was the camaraderie. There's excitement, as well, but it was the teamwork. And it was the first time I got to see my dad as something other than a dad."
His two cousins and two uncles were also with the Snelgrove volunteers, so it was "a family thing." His father retired as a district chief after 36 years of volunteer service, while one of his cousins still works for the Brampton fire department, he said.
A lot has changed since then-- thermal imaging cameras, specialty teams, air conditioned trucks-- and MacDonald has seen the firefighter compliment in Brampton almost triple to 340 firefighters, and he has nothing but praise for the things that the city has accomplished over the years, taking a leadership role nationally.
MacDonald credits the ingenuity of his staff and "a very progressive council that gives us the financial support," in keeping the Brampton fire department on the leading edge.
"And we're just on the cusp of the biggest change. We're entering the computer age on our trucks," MacDonald said.
MacDonald said things haven't changed much in the way firefighters across the country have done their jobs-- a call is dispatched, they drive to the scene, and put out the fire. It's a fact joked about when firefighters say, "We have a rich history, 100 years of tradition unimpeded by progress."
But Brampton has always been on the leading edge, and it finds itself there again, with the installation of Automatic Vehicle Locators (AVLs) in all trucks. They are being tested right now, and the results are very positive, MacDonald said.
"AVL will reduce our response times," MacDonald said, by automatically finding and then dispatching the nearest truck to a call.
It will be used department-wide beginning in April, he said.
And laptop computers will be installed in all fire trucks this year, improving dispatch and allowing firefighters to access maps showing the shortest route to a call, and pertinent information about the scene. For instance, at an industrial fire, the location of any stored hazardous materials and floor plans for the building will all be accessible on the computers. Gone will be the paper system that firefighters now use. The computers will be faster and more efficient, and will allow for precision accuracy in recording the fire department's response, which can be crucial in a fire investigation, he said.
The computers will have the capability of providing floor plans for all new homes in Brampton, too, to help firefighters with search and rescue. That capability will be utilized some time in the next few years, MacDonald said.
Everything that is being introduced is "tested, then tested again," he said, so that process, plus training, will take time.
Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell praised MacDonald for his contributions over the years.
"Chief MacDonald is an experienced professional firefighter," she said. "Over the years he has also demonstrated excellent leadership skills and implemented a number of innovative ideas that have enhanced the reputation of Brampton fire services."
MacDonald was an executive member of the Brampton Professional Firefighter's Association before taking on the role of assistant deputy chief in 1999, and then deputy chief in 2003.
