Pat Higgins had been volunteering with the Roberts Creek fire department for 21 years, and he took on the role of the department’s new chief as of September.
“I’ve never been involved with anything as long as I’ve been with the fire hall. It’s been a significant part of my life,” Higgins said.
Higgins was appointed at a Sunshine Coast Regional District board meeting on Sept. 10. He was off-Coast at the time, but his assistant fire chief was there to stand in for him.
Higgins had been the acting fire chief since previous chief Rob Michael made the move to the Gibsons fire department last July.
Higgins said he was chosen as fire chief partly because of his years of service.
“I heard a few comments from people,” Higgins said. “They felt comfortable with me on scene and working with them in the department.”
Since taking over, Higgins said he has been working with other departments on inter-department cooperation. He didn’t start this initiative – it was ongoing when he put on the chief’s helmet.
“We have a lot of inter-department communication now, such as training officers meet on a regular basis,” Higgins said. “I’ve got a really good executive. We had some plans put in place before I became chief, so I’m hoping to just keep it on that path, keep our members trained up and safe and do our best for the community.”
Higgins said he plans to start looking at ways to encourage young people to join the firefighters and bring some younger blood into the department.
