Fire Fighter Exchange Program
Richmond Fire-Rescue has been an active participant in the International Fire Fighter Exchange Program since 1998. Fire-Rescue staff developed the program based on the teachers exchange program with some modifications to suit Richmond's requirements. The City of Richmond's first Fire Fighter Exchange was with Brisbane, Queensland, Australia in 1997.
Richmond Fire-Rescue was the second city in BC to take advantage of this unique program offering fire fighters the opportunity to experience fire fighting work in other countries.
The program gives the firefighter and their family a once-in-a-lifetime experience of living overseas and being exposed to a different culture and lifestyle. The benefit is the ability to observe, participate and record different aspects of the job of fire fighting that other departments use in day-to-day operations, and to bring these new ideas back to Richmond for evaluation and possible implementation.
From a personal perspective, founding member Harold Kiesewetter says "The best part of a fire fighter exchange program is the life long friends made in the tight knit fire fighting community."
To date Richmond has had successful exchanges with Queensland, Australia as well as Christchurch, New Zealand.
Fire-Rescue Departments interested in applying for an exchange with Richmond should contact the Fire Chief at 604-303-2701, by email care of Fire-Rescue or by regular mail at:
Richmond Fire-Rescue Department
6960 Gilbert Road
Richmond, British Columbia
V7C 3V4 Canada
