Firefighters Union Calls for Increased Funding to Enhance Response Times

The Halifax Professional Fire Fighters (HPFF) union is advocating for increased funding to improve emergency response times across the municipality. In a statement, the union highlighted that in 2024, Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency (HRFE) met its own response time target only **54.5 percent** of the time.

Joe Triff, vice-president of HPFF, emphasized the importance of adequate resources. “Response time targets are critical to ensure we have enough resources, that’s firefighters on fire trucks, on scene quickly to perform search, rescue and fire suppression,” he stated. “Every second that passes without intervention allows a fire to grow and spread, increasing the risk to the public and to the responding firefighters.”

The current standard for response times, established by the Halifax Regional Council in **2018**, requires **14 firefighters** to arrive within **11 minutes**. This benchmark is already below the international best practice set by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1710, which governs urban firefighting standards.

Challenges in Urban Firefighting

Triff pointed out that since the amalgamation of fire services in **1996**, Halifax has struggled to maintain effective urban response capabilities. The reallocation of urban resources to rural and suburban areas has improved fire response in those communities, but the urban core has not received the necessary investment to keep pace with population growth.

“The urban response capabilities that Dartmouth and Halifax had up to the mid-1990s have been spread to rural and suburban communities since amalgamation. However, our urban core hasn’t seen the investment required to keep pace with the growth,” Triff explained.

To meet response targets effectively, the HPFF asserts that each frontline apparatus requires **four firefighters**. Currently, HRFE operates **51 stations** to serve approximately **419,000 residents** across a vast area of **5,577 square kilometers**.

Budget Considerations

While Triff acknowledged that the fire department’s budget has increased in recent years, he insisted that the growth is insufficient to meet the rising demand for fire services. In **2025**, the municipality increased its fire budget to **$97.9 million**, reflecting a **5.2 percent** increase over the previous year.

Despite this increase, the HPFF maintains that more funding is necessary to ensure public safety and efficient emergency response. The union believes that without adequate resources, the response times will continue to lag, potentially compromising the safety of both residents and firefighters in Halifax.