- Annual Fire Service Reports -
2023 Annual Fire Service Report
ALERT: Effective at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, May 5, 2025, the County of Grande Prairie Regional Fire Service will be issuing a Fire Ban for the entire County, along with the towns of Beaverlodge, Sexsmith and Wembley. The Fire Ban replaces the former Fire Restriction issued on April 30.
The Wembley Fire Department is a dedicated Professional Volunteer Fire Department that operates as a division of the Town of Wembley.
The Wembley Fire Department, under service contract, provides fire, rescue, and medical first response to the County Of Grande Prairie Regional Fire Service, and is the Primary Emergency Response Agency for the Town Of Wembley. The Fire Service contract renewed in 2022 with the County of Grande Prairie, now includes administrative services provided by the County Regional Fire Services. The management team is inclusive of 2 administrative staff, 1 Fire Chief, 3 Deputy Chiefs (Operations, Training, and Logistics), 2 District Chiefs (Stationed out of Wembley and Sexsmith). Additionally the County provides 1 Fire Marshall and 1 Fire Prevention Officer to look after after investigations, inspections, code compliance, fire prevention, and education.
Our Department holds a high standard with support from our Mayor and Council, with the goal of providing our citizens and neighbours the highest quality of Emergency Response Services possible. The Wembley Fire Department houses a roster of >20 Volunteer Firefighters, 2 Lieutenants, and 4 Senior Firefighters. The Town staffs one Full-Time Station Captain and one Full-Time Firefighter to manage daily operations Monday to Friday. During the Spring/Summer Fire Season, we staff additional Firefighters under contract to assist in annual testing, maintenance, training, and day-time incident responses.
In 2024 the department transitioned to a paid on-call model for responses. Firefighters now receive an hourly compensation for their time on emergency responses. The goal was to ensure that a negative financial impact was not incurred by our firefighters in order for them to serve in their community.
The Wembley Fire Department in partnership with the County of Grande Prairie Regional Fire Service trains all new members to the NFPA 1001 Level 2 through the Alberta Office of the Fire Commissioners Public Safety Division. We are fortunate to have multiple certified NFPA 1041 Instructors in-house along with a certified First Aid Instructor and 2 Basic Life Support instructors. In addition to recruit training, our members meet every Thursday night for 3 hours to train on specific topics to ensure we display competence in our skills annually. The Wembley Fire Department Training Grounds houses multiple training structures and props. Most of the facilities have been purchased and constructed through donations, grant funding and volunteer work. Our facilities include a two-story Class A burn facility (shown below) which was upgraded from a single-story in late 2023 thanks to a $30,000 contribution from Ovintiv. We also house car fire props, dumpster fire props, cold smoke structures, forcible entry and more!
Have you ever wondered why when you call 911 for an ambulance the Fire Department shows up? The Wembley Fire Department noticed that due to the community's unique location between the City of Grande Prairie and the Town Of Beaverlodge, response for an ambulance can be delayed. The Fire Department is set up with Alberta Health Services as a Full Medical Co-Response Agency, meaning we will respond to any medical emergency in our district no matter the severity.
The Wembley Fire Department is prepared to respond to a wide variety of emergencies. Our firefighters are trained in structural and wildland firefighting, motor vehicle extrication and response, swift water rescue, hazardous materials incidents, medical co-response, gas leaks, backcountry rescue, and much more.
If it's not fires or medical emergencies, you have likely seen us out on Highway 43, the twined provincial highway that runs in the middle of our jurisdiction. We are fortunate to have several members with advanced training in vehicle extrication and stabilization. This is accompanied by 1 Heavy Rescue truck, and 1 Engine, both with full sets of hydraulic rescue tools "The Jaws of Life". We are prepared to best serve not only those who live here, but those who visit, work, or are travelling through the area.
You may have heard the large roof-mounted siren at the Fire Hall sound from time to time. The roof mounted "Air Raid" siren was the original notification device to notify responders for many years. The Fire Chief would receive a phone call that a fire department response was required. The Fire Chief would promptly respond to the station and activate the roof siren. Firefighters would hear the siren, and muster at the fire station. Cellular applications and portable radios have since replaced the need for the siren. The siren now serves as a secondary notification option, should cellular networks be compromised. The siren may also be set off when the responding officer believes the incident at hand can pose an imminent danger in the community. Such events are a confirmed structure fire, gas leak, or environmental emergency.
We limit testing of this siren to about once per year. When we plan to test it, we will update our Facebook page with the date and time.
We are always happy to offer station tours, and educational materials to families, businesses, and schools at your request. Feel free to stop by the hall anytime! Contact numbers are posted on the main entrance of the hall should someone not be available to assist you.
Facebook: @wembleyfiredepartment
Instagram: @wembleyfiredepartment
For information regarding the Fire Department please contact: District Fire Chief Matt Smith at masmith@countygp.ab.ca
Address: 9928 100 Street, Box 325, Wembley, AB, T0H 3S0
Office Phone: 780-766-3170
Office Hours: Monday - Friday from 0800-1700
*For Emergencies please call 9-1-1*
Interested in joining? Click this tab to see the recruitment page.
