Policy Bulletin

Policy Bulletin 296

Why was the policy changed?

Following an incident at Saskatchewan Penitentiary in the summer of 2008 relating to the minimum number of persons required to respond with SCBA to a fire emergency, senior management confirmed that the minimum response to a fire involving use of SCBA would be “2+1+1”.

The amendment provides greater clarity in the policy regarding staff response to fire alarms and removes a previous inconsistency in policy documents.

What has changed?

A technical amendment was made to paragraph 10 in Section 5 of the Fire Safety Manual to replace the existing paragraph entitled “TWO (2) MINUTE RESPONSE CAPABILITY” with the insertion of the new wording entitled “RESPONSE TO FIRE ALARMS”.

How was it developed?

Following discussions at the National Joint Occupational Health and Safety (NJOHS) Policy Committee, the policy owner consulted Executive Committee members and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada on the specific wording of the required amendment.

Accountabilities?

Each region is responsible for communicating the change to staff and ensuring that established local fire emergency procedures reflect this amendment.

Who will be affected by the policy?

Effective immediately, the amendment applies to all sites equipped with SCBA for use in response to fire emergencies. This does not apply to National Headquarters, Regional Headquarters, parole offices, Community Correctional Centres, minimum security institutions, and those healing lodges not equipped with SCBA.

Expected cost?

None.

Other impacts?

None.

Contact:

For more information

To learn about upcoming or ongoing consultations on proposed federal regulations, visit the Canada Gazette and Consulting with Canadians websites.