British Columbia Fire Watch Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: Fire safety law in British Columbia

A fire watch guard in British Columbia works under two provincial laws and, in some places, a city by-law. Knowing their names helps you read your post orders and talk to fire inspectors.

Duties under the Fire Safety Act

• Fire inspectors are people designated by a local authority, such as a city council or regional district board (sections 1 and 8).
• An owner must make sure no fire hazard exists on or in their premises (section 7).
• If a fire damaged property and no fire department attended, the occupier (or the owner, if there is no occupier) must immediately report it to a fire department or the fire commissioner (section 22).

BC does not publish one combined 2024 Fire Code book. The province publishes the order and its BC changes, and readers use them with the National Fire Code 2020. The 2018 BC Fire Code text is still free online, and these lessons use it for the details of shutdowns (Section 6.1), fire safety plans (Section 2.8) and hot work (Section 5.2). Check the current code or ask your fire department for the latest wording.

Lesson 2: When a fire watch is needed

The 2018 BC Fire Code text says fire protection installations must be kept working. It also says that when any part of a fire protection system is temporarily shut down, alternative measures must be taken so that protection is maintained. A fire watch is one of those measures.

The Code's explanatory notes give more detail:

• Any interruption of a system's normal operation, for any reason, counts as a temporary shutdown.
• For a fire alarm shutdown, alternative measures should be worked out with the fire department, so occupants can be warned and the fire department called if a fire starts.
• For a sprinkler shutdown, measures can include emergency hose lines, portable extinguishers, extra fire watch service and temporary water connections.
• People who may need notice of a shutdown include the fire department, supervisory staff in the building and the occupants.

A BC example: Chilliwack

Chilliwack Fire Department asks for a fire watch in occupied apartment and condo buildings, institutional buildings such as hospitals and care homes, and assembly buildings when the fire alarm, sprinkler or emergency power system is not working. When equipment goes out of service, the owner should call a qualified ASTTBC fire protection technician, who notifies the fire department. The city is clear that a fire watch is not a substitute for repairing the system.

Lesson 3: Local fire watch rules in Vancouver and Chilliwack

Each fire department can set its own fire watch details. Here are two BC examples. Your site must follow the rules of the fire department where the building is.

Vancouver also says fire watch staff must be easy to identify by uniform or clothing, know how the building's fire and life safety systems work, keep radio contact with each other, and have a designated supervisor.

Lesson 4: Doing the watch and keeping the log

Chilliwack describes the fire watch as a dedicated person whose sole duty is to actively look for fires. Do not take on other tasks that make you miss a round.

Equipment

• A working phone that can call 9-1-1 at all times (Chilliwack)
• Portable fire extinguishers that are easy to reach (Chilliwack)
• A way to alert occupants, such as an air horn. Vancouver says occupants and the fire department must be told what the alert method is.
• Keys, a flashlight and the fire watch log

The log

Vancouver's order asks for a written log, kept in time order and on site for the whole watch. Use a new sheet each day and extra sheets for extra floors. The top of the sheet lists the address, date, a contact person and phone number, and the names and locations of people with disabilities who need help to leave. Each round gets a time, a check for each floor and the monitor's initials.

The fire safety plan

Many buildings must have a fire safety plan under Section 2.8 of the 2018 BC Fire Code text. It covers how to sound the alarm, notify the fire department, guide occupants out (including people who need help) and control the fire. The plan must be kept in the building, and supervisory staff must be trained in it before they take on fire safety duties. Read it before your first round.

If you find fire or smoke

1. Alert occupants with the agreed signal.
2. Call 9-1-1 from a safe place and give the address and location of the fire.
3. Use an extinguisher only on a small fire, if you are trained and it is safe.
4. Help people leave, starting with anyone who needs help.
5. Meet firefighters and tell them what you saw.

Lesson 5: Hot work and ending the watch

Hot work means welding, cutting, grinding and other work that makes sparks or flame. Section 5.2 of the 2018 BC Fire Code text sets these minimums when hot work cannot be moved to a non-combustible area:

• Combustible and flammable materials within 15 m must be protected from ignition.
• A continuous fire watch is kept during the work and for at least 60 minutes after it ends.
• The area and nearby exposed areas are inspected 4 hours after the work ends (or a more thorough inspection is done when the fire watch ends).
• At least one portable fire extinguisher is kept in the hot work area.
• Fire watch staff must have extinguishing equipment and be trained to use it.
• More than one fire watch person is needed if one person cannot see all the exposed combustibles.

Your site's hot work permit may add more rules. Follow the permit and ask the supervisor if anything is unclear.

Ending the watch

Keep patrolling until the system is fully working again. Then make sure the right people are told: the monitoring company, and the fire department where its rules require it. In Chilliwack, the technician tells the fire department when repairs and tests are done. Record the time the watch ended and hand in your log.