Chief of Red Deer Emergency Services Ken McMullen with his 2020 Fire Chief of the Year award from the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs. McMullen has just become President of the Association. (Supplied)

By Alessia Proietti

Red Deer Emergency Services

Red Deer’s Ken McMullen credits new presidency of Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs to incredible team

Oct 14, 2022 | 2:13 PM

Chief of Red Deer Emergency Services (RDES) Ken McMullen has been named the new President of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs (CAFC), but says the real spotlight should be placed on those he works alongside.

“Fortunately I’ve been able to rely on the support of the people around me on the departments that I worked with,” he said. “Nobody can do this type of work and meet the commitments that are being asked from organizations if you don’t have a great group around you.”

Having been a CAFC board member for 16 years, most recently as Vice-President, he announced the new role for the 2022-2024 term on October 9.

Beginning as a volunteer fire fighter in 1997, he progressed quickly to a certified Fire Investigator/Inspector, following his first fire chief, Pat Graham, to the provincial Office of the Fire Commissioner (OFC). According to the CAFC, McMullen conducted over 500 investigations in six years and was involved in over 55 fire fatality investigations.

Passing away in 2017, Graham served as Fire Commissioner from 2001-2007. According to his family, the was instrumental in building the OFC, creating the Alberta Emergency Services Medal program and initiating the Fire Service Advisory Committee to allow fire service representative easier accessibility to the office. In his obituary, the family states his caring nature for those struggling made him a leader in mental health for emergency workers, hosting Critical Stress debriefings with his teams. They say Graham received six prestigious medals for his work.

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McMullen says he was also mentored by former Calgary Fire Chief Wayne Morris.

According to an article from the Calgary Herald, Morris implemented a health and wellness program as Fire Chief and the first Canadian aquatic rescue program. He was part of the Calgary Firefighters Benevolent Fund to help former and current staff during times of distress and was awarded Professional Fire Chief of the Year in 2022 by the CAFC. He passed away from occupationally-caused colon cancer in 2012.

“Both of those individuals encouraged me at a very young age to get involved within committees and work groups and try to make a difference where you can,” he said, joining his first CAFC committee 24 years ago.

Shifting to RDES in 2018, he became Fire Chief of one of the few remaining fully integrated services with 230 staff of fire fighter paramedics, dispatchers, fire prevention officers, and fdministration, according to the CAFC.

Red Deer top official with Red Deer Emergency Services, when he served as strictly fire chief and fire fighter, Ken McMullen. (Supplied)

As a result, McMullen has noticed unique challenges faced by the frontline men and women, which he says keeps him motivated each day.

“Those folks that deliver the day to day services,” he says, “make it capable for myself and others to not only participate within our own services but often participate in other levels outside our own services.”

Some of those challenges include strained ambulance delivery by Alberta Health Services, and staffing issues resulting from burnouts, he states.

It is why in his tenure as president, he says, his priorities for his colleagues are firstly, to advocate to the federal government for mental health funding, helping first responders cope with the things they see, hear and smell. McMullen was recently awarded for his efforts in this domain at the International Association of Fire Chiefs Conference in August.

READ: Red Deer’s Chief of Emergency Services Ken McMullen receives prestigious award

He also listed improving fire prevention systems in First Nations communities, determining appropriate ways for fire fighters to deliver medical first response, and increasing recruitment and retention efforts for volunteer firefighters.

He says all fire chiefs, including those who enter more active roles in boards, unions, and in provincial and federal organizations, must also be recognized for the added burden they undertake.

“You take on the opportunity to represent your peer groups and you do it with the full intention of making your industry that much healthier, safer and better,” he said.

McMullen adds he would not be able to fulfill the new role without the unwavering support of The City of Red Deer in its flexibility and understanding of the added workload and time commitment.

As Fire Prevention Week comes to a close on Oct. 15, McMullen says the community can show support to first responders by maintaining their own degree of prevention such as ensuring homes have working smoke alarms and creating home escape plans, to help reduce the risks for first responders.

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