Volunteer Fire Department

The Upper Nicola Fire Department was founded in the early 1990’s and consisted of about 20 volunteers at its peak. They trained bi-weekly in progressive drills and relay evolutions and participated in training and seminars provincially. Upper Nicola Fire Department engaged in annual competitions and placed and earned accommodations for speed, and safety. They also fundraised and hosted communal potlucks, organized community events, and sponsored the Moccasin Hockey Tournaments Security and First Aid. They also actively participated in community clean ups and spring burning and made numerous other contributions to the activities and infrastructure of the surrounding area often lending assistance and manpower when requested.

In the latter years of the mid 2000s, when the narrative of Fire Protection began to focus more on mitigation and education, the Upper Nicola Band Fire Department adapted and restructured its training and personnel to be more acclimatized to the changes set forth by the NFPA standard, which were promoting education and fire safe behaviours. We also began to cross train in urban interface and wildland firefighting as well as structural firefighting practices.