The Smithers Volunteer Fire Department is hoping to purchase some new radios.
At its Oct. 24 regular meeting, council approved applying for a grant to help pay for them.
Fire Chief Derek Dickson said if the UBCM grant application is successful, they’d like to purchase new portable radio communications hardware.
He wrote in a staff report that currently Smithers Fire Rescue has an approximate inventory of 40 portable radios, associated chargers, remote mics and assorted accessories. Some of this hardware is approaching 20 years old and in discussions with their local service provider, it has been identified that some radios are no longer performing to their optimum specifications.
He added that Smithers Fire Rescue’s incident commanders, company officers and crew members are experiencing increasingly difficult communication challenges while attending emergency scenes, wildfire events and training.
Dickson also mentioned that while attempts have been made to maximize the efficiency of existing hardware, repairs are becoming more challenging due to parts availability, lack of manufacturer support for older models and changes in software for radio frequency programming.
Dickson said this project will allow a higher level of confidence in their communications system through improved equipment performance and reliability.
Councillor Frank Wray said the safety of firefighters is of the utmost importance. Everyone on council agreed and voted unanimously to apply for the grant money.