Communiqué 2024-1: Sprinkler installations in long-term care homes and homes for special care: compliance deadline and options for achieving compliance

January 5

In May 2013, Ontario Regulation 150/13 was filed to amend the Fire Code with new requirements that apply to care occupancies, care and treatment occupancies, and retirement homes regulated under the Retirement Homes Act, 2010.

These requirements include provisions for enhanced fire safety planning, compulsory training, and mandatory upgrades to existing buildings including the installation of sprinklers and other building retrofits. To facilitate implementation by building owners and operators, compliance deadlines for these requirements have been phased in since January 1, 2014.

The final compliance deadline of January 1, 2025 relates to sprinkler installation requirements under Article 9.4.5.5. of Division B of the Fire Code that apply to:

  • buildings containing long-term care homes, or
  • homes for special care that are classified as either a care occupancy or care and treatment occupancy where sleeping accommodation is provided for more than ten residents

Compliance with sprinkler installation, and other requirements in Part 9 of the Fire Code, is generally achieved through implementation of the prescriptive code requirement, however, other options are available for achieving compliance, including the following:

  • implementation of an approved life safety study in accordance with subsection 9.1.4. of Division B of the Fire Code, or
  • implementation of an approved alternative solution under subsection 1.3.2. of Division C of the Fire Code

While substituting either a life safety study or an alternative solution for a code requirement may not always be feasible, these approaches to achieving compliance may be effective in select situations as either interim or permanent solutions. For instance, for a long-term care home undergoing redevelopment where the project completion date is anticipated to extend past January 1, 2025, achieving Fire Code compliance in the existing home via one of these options may be an effective approach until redevelopment is completed.

Fire departments are encouraged to review these two compliance options with owners/operators of long-term care homes or homes for special care that may be experiencing challenges with meeting sprinkler requirements.

It is important to note that life safety studies and alternative solutions must be developed by either a professional engineer or architect and must be submitted to the chief fire official (CFO) for approval. When a proposal is not accepted by the CFO, building owners/operators may appeal the decision in the same manner as they would for an order. The first stage of appeal involves making a request to the fire marshal for a review. A fire marshal review of a life safety study or alternative solution is directed at evaluating the adequacy of proposed alternative measures.

For buildings not in compliance on January 1, 2025, enforcement options available to fire departments are outlined in the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997 (FPPA). A case-by-case assessment of risk factors, progress being made towards compliance, as well as local policies and procedures will inform the selection of enforcement action in these instances. When the option to issue an inspection order under subsection 21.(1) is exercised, the right to request a fire marshal review should be reviewed with the owner/operator as he or she may be unfamiliar with the appeal process established under the FPPA. For limited cases involving serious, multiple fire safety risk factors, enforcement options may include orders to close or authorizations to close under subsection 21.(2) of the FPPA, both requiring fire marshal approval.

The process for sprinkler implementation is complex as it involves a number of steps, including securing funds, applying for building permits, and undertaking construction. As these steps may introduce delays, it is important that, during this process, fire departments continue working with owners/operators to ensure active progress towards compliance is being made.

For assistance with questions on the compliance deadline for sprinkler installations, please contact your local fire protection adviser.

Communiqué 2024-2: Mutual aid participants

January 31

Recently, the Office of the Fire Marshal has received multiple inquiries regarding the option of including First Nations fire departments in the regional Mutual Aid Program. It is the Fire Marshal’s position that First Nations fire departments and other non-municipal fire departments can be included in Ontario Mutual Aid Plans to further supplement local response capabilities. Examples of other non-municipal fire departments include:

  • federal-based fire departments (Department of National Defence and federal airport fire departments)
  • industrial fire brigades
  • cross-border (provincial and federal) fire departments

In some circumstances, fire departments may determine it is appropriate for there to be automatic aid agreements with these non-municipal fire departments which can include a cost-recovery arrangement or fee for service. Automatic aid or other fire protection agreements are not part of an Ontario Mutual Aid Plan.

Fire departments that are not municipal fire departments may be subject to different legal and statutory considerations. This does not prevent participation in Ontario’s Mutual Aid Plans; however, these considerations need to be taken into account by all parties to the Mutual Aid Plan prior to it commencing.

Other considerations, such as liability and workers’ compensation, may be necessary to support the inclusion of other fire departments to ensure they are properly covered to work in the intended capacity. The need for these additional items would be determined by the non-municipal fire department.

Mutual Aid Plans are an important tool in the success of Ontario’s fire service Mutual aid responses are designed to supplement local emergency responses when an emergency exceeds the capacity of a local department. By design, Mutual Aid Plans are reciprocal in nature and provided at no cost for the participating agencies.

Please contact your local fire protection adviser for additional support or if you have any questions.

Communiqué 2024-3 (amended): Municipal Reimbursement Program for emergency response into unincorporated Ontario

June 4

On March 19th, 2022, the government launched a program to reimburse municipalities for emergency responses in unincorporated Ontario in areas that are not already protected by a fire department. The criteria to reimburse has since been enhanced to acknowledge the wide and varying types of responses that are being undertaken by municipal fire departments in unincorporated Ontario.

The following emergency response call types may be eligible for reimbursement:

  • on roads that are not considered provincial highways by the Ministry of Transportation:
    • motor vehicle collisions
    • hazmat
    • vehicle fires
  • false alarms
  • public hazard assistance calls:
    • carbon monoxide incidents
    • public utility incidents
    • electrical utility incidents
    • natural, propane or other gas utility incidents
  • structure fires
  • rescue (defined as an emergency incident that primarily involves activities directed at locating and rescuing endangered persons and removing those persons to a safe location, this could also include, but is not limited to, the provisions of emergency medical care)
  • the provisions of any emergency services listed above, within a provincial park in unincorporated Ontario

The following call types are not eligible for reimbursement under the program:

  • any call into an unincorporated area where an established fire department is responding
  • any mutual aid or automatic aid calls
  • any calls to attend a federal park
  • any calls to attend a provincial park that lies within your municipal jurisdiction
  • any call to an area or location with a fire protection agreement in place with the municipality making a claim through Transfer Payment Ontario
  • any call for which another government funded agency has established a separate reimbursement process for responses by the municipality (i.e., responses covered by the Ministry of Northern Development, Ministry of Transportation or Hydro One)
  • tiered medical response, first response, medical response

To be consistent with the Ministry of Transportation response rates, effective November 1st, 2023, the rates have increased to $559.86 per apparatus for any portion of the first hour, and to $279.93 for each 30-minute increment per apparatus after the first hour.

Important dates

  • Applications for reimbursement for any emergency response calls that occur between March 18, 2024 – March 16, 2025, can be submitted starting June 3, 2024, and must be submitted by March 23, 2025.

Municipalities who are interested in participating in the reimbursement program administered through the Office of the Fire Marshal are encouraged to request a copy of the required Transfer Payment Agreement from their local fire protection adviser and visit the Ontario government funding opportunities site to apply.

For all enquiries related to the reimbursement program, please contact your local fire protection adviser.

Communiqué 2024-4: Amendments to O. Reg 144/20: Exemption for Temporary Health and Residential Facilities

April 2

On March 25, 2024, amendments to O. Reg. 144/20: Exemption for Temporary Health and Residential Facilities made under the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997 came into force.

The amended regulation extends measures that exempt temporary health or residential facilities from compliance with certain requirements under the Ontario Fire Code (OFC) until March 31, 2027. The extension is aligned with changes made to the Ontario Building Code (OBC) through O. Reg. 156/24. Together, these measures will facilitate continued flexibility to respond to Ontario’s health and shelter system capacity pressures while ensuring that certain exempted health care facilities are on a pathway to meet the requirements of the OBC. Further extensions to this regulation beyond March 31, 2027 will not be considered.

It should also be noted that O. Reg. 144/20 provisions introduced in 2022, which clarify how the OFC applies to buildings containing temporary health or residential facilities, remain in force. Specifically, these provisions establish that while temporary health or residential facilities are exempt from certain OFC requirements that might compel building upgrades, these facilities continue to be subject to all other requirements, including those applicable to buildings containing vulnerable occupants.

Fire departments with enquiries regarding O. Reg. 144/20 may contact their fire protection adviser or email askofm@ontario.ca.

Communiqué 2024-5: No.  2024-05: Constable Joe Macdonald Public Safety Officers’ Survivors Scholarship Fund

May 8

The Constable Joe Macdonald Public Safety Officers’ Survivors Scholarship Fund was established in 1997 to recognize the tremendous sacrifice made by our public safety officers and their families to keep Ontario safe. The scholarship is available to spouses and children of public safety officers killed in the line of duty. The scholarship may be used for tuition, textbooks and eligible living expenses for programs leading to a degree or a diploma at an approved Canadian post-secondary educational institution.

The purpose of the present communiqué is to inform you of the availability of the scholarship and to provide information on how to obtain an application form and application guidelines.  Please note that the due date for submission of applications is June 10, 2024.

For the purpose of the scholarship, “public safety officers” includes all firefighters (full-time, part-time and volunteer) as defined in subsection 1(1) of the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997.

Please forward information about the scholarship to the attention of the appropriate areas and/or persons for distribution.

All enquiries regarding the scholarship and the application process should be sent to Yoko Iwasaki by email at yoko.iwasaki@ontario.ca or by phone at 647-532-8149.

Anyone who meets the criteria for this scholarship and wishes to obtain both the application guidelines and/or the application form (English or French) should also contact Yoko.

Additionally, written enquiries can also be sent to her attention at:

Yoko Iwasaki, Community Safety Analyst
Program Development Section
External Relations Branch, Public Safety Division
Ministry of the Solicitor General
25 Grosvenor Street, 12th floor
Toronto, Ontario M7A 2H3

Grant funding is subject to the ministry receiving the necessary appropriation from the Ontario Legislature.