The Town of Okotoks greeted their new Fire Chief earlier this month.

Trevor Brice got his start in the United Kingdom in 1983, moving to Canada in 2010 where he spent time in parts of Saskatchewan and Alberta.

He officially started in Okotoks on Tuesday, August 4, receiving a warm welcome from the department, particularly from Deputy Fire Chiefs Freeman and MacIsaac.

Brice says he was able to get a good feel of how the Okotoks crew does things within his first few days on the job.

"I was fortunate enough, in my first two days, to go out on two different calls; a water rescue and a wildland fire. Everybody worked very diligently, it was good to see."

Those kinds of calls, though common in Okotoks, are nothing new to Brice, who's no stranger to the prairies at this point.

"Nothing I'm not used to, North Battleford's got the North Saskatchewan River running through it and we were always going off to wildland fires. Certainly back in the UK I worked in some more rural areas."

A big part of the transition to the community, according to Brice, is a transition we've all had to adapt to: the extra health measures around the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It's changed some of the ways we have to operate, and obviously the way the whole town is working. I'd just like to remind people to keep their social distancing, make sure they're washing their hand regularly, and the fact that we can all help each other by wearing a face mask when we're out in public. That's one of the highest things on our agenda at the moment. For me, it's about keeping my first responders safe while they're keeping members of the community safe."

He says the beauty of Okotoks and the view of the Rocky Mountains are some of the perks that are already making the job worthwhile.

 

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