Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / Pattison Media / FILE PHOTO - Chilliwack firefighters train during a June 2022 house burn in Chilliwack.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Record number of applicants

Record number of individuals apply for Chilliwack Fire Department’s paid on-call recruitment

Nov 7, 2025 | 9:06 AM

CHILLIWACK — It’s always an encouraging sign to have a significant number of people who are willing and able to give back to their community by serving as a highly qualified firefighter.

According to the minutes of the Public Safety Advisory Committee held on September 17, 2025, the Chilliwack Fire Department fielded a record number of applicants for its paid on-call fire recruitment earlier this year.

Chilliwack Fire Chief Andy Brown tells Fraser Valley Today that the department attracted both talent and numbers in this year’s recruiting class.

“We received just over one hundred applicants and were pleased with the number and quality of applicants, which made it difficult for our recruiting team to narrow it down through the hiring process to the twenty-five new recruits we brought forward to this year’s Paid On-Call recruit training program,” Chief Brown said.

The 2025-26 intake process began in August with written assessments, interviews and physical testing, at which point the department moved forward with these specially selected recruit camp participants. Once they finish the program, they’ll be assigned to one of six fire halls in Chilliwack, including Hall 1 (Cheam Avenue), Hall 2 (Rosedale), Hall 3 (Yarrow), Hall 4 (South Sumas Road), Hall 5 (Ryder Lake) and Hall 6 (Greendale).

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The Chilliwack Fire Department has seen an increase in the number of fire calls in 2025 versus the year prior. As of the end of the third quarter (Sept. 30), Chilliwack firefighters responded to 3,690 calls, an uptick of 173 calls compared to the same time period in 2024. In the third quarter of 2025, Chilliwack fire crews responded to 228 fires, 135 motor vehicle incidents and 78 emergency medical aid calls, keeping both career and paid on-call firefighters busy.