The City of Oshawa congratulated Oshawa Fire Services Chief Derrick Clark on being recognized as ‘Fire Chief of the Year’ by the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs. The provincial award recognizes outstanding leadership and a fire chief who strives to make a difference in the sector.
Chief Clark has always advocated for significant investment in Fire Services to ensure both public safety and firefighter safety. During his time as Chief, Oshawa City Council has invested $177.7 million into the Fire Services Branch, said a city statement.
These investments have led to increased staffing including the addition of three frontline firefighters, a communications officer, an assistant deputy fire chief and two fire prevention inspectors. Capital investments have included enhancements in bunker gear and health and safety equipment; a new state of the art fire training facility; replacement of eight fire suppression vehicles; various small vehicle and equipment replacement; and, additional rapid response rescue apparatus.
In addition, operational investments were made relating to administration support reorganization; updated Fire Master Plan and Community Risk Assessment; updated Fire Underwriters survey; deployment of a mobile workforce; enhanced Alarm for Life Fire Safety program; and, the reduction of call processing times in communications, exceeding National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards.
In December, Chief Clark was nationally recognized as a Champion of Mental Health by the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment for his strong belief in peer support and creating safe spaces for people to talk about their mental health. His work has led to partnerships with local organizations such as the Durham Region Critical Incident Stress Support Team and Wounded Warriors, expanding access to mental health services such as one-on-one peer support, defuses and debriefs, workshops, retreats and direct access to counselling services for Oshawa Fire Services staff.
A 36-year veteran of Oshawa Fire Services, Chief Clark’s tremendous work ethic, and commitment and leadership skills enabled him to rise through the ranks to be appointed Fire Chief in 2017.
The Hicks Morley Fire Chief of the Year award was presented at the 2022 Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs/Labour Management Conference virtual seminar in January.
“I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of city council to congratulate Oshawa Fire Chief Derrick Clark on this significant achievement,” says Oshawa Mayor Dan Carter. “Chief Clark is someone who always leads by example both within Oshawa Fire Services and among emergency personnel across the province. We are extremely proud to celebrate this achievement with Derrick and we thank him for his service to our city.”