Alberta Fire Watch Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: The fire code and who looks after it in Alberta

The fire code in force in Alberta is the National Fire Code – 2023 Alberta Edition, often shortened to NFC(AE). The 2023 edition came into force on May 1, 2024. A second printing has since been published. The code is published by the National Research Council (NRC).

Alberta's safety codes, including the fire code, come under the Safety Codes Act. It sets codes, standards and processes in 10 areas, such as fire and building. Municipal Affairs administers the Act and is the lead ministry for fire codes. The Safety Codes Council is an independent body that certifies and trains safety codes officers, including those in the fire discipline.

Who or what	Role
National Fire Code – 2023 Alberta Edition	The fire code in force in Alberta
Safety Codes Act	The provincial law that sets up the safety codes system, including fire
Municipal Affairs	Lead ministry for fire codes and standards
Safety Codes Council	Certifies and trains safety codes officers
Fire Commissioner	Receives reports of fires that cause death, injury or dollar loss
STANDATA	Alberta's official code interpretations, variances and bulletins

Your local fire department sets many day-to-day fire watch details, such as when to call them and how often to patrol. Always ask for the local rules and the building's fire safety plan before you start.

Lesson 2: When a fire watch starts in an Alberta building

Medicine Hat Fire Service publishes clear fire watch duties. They are a good Alberta example of what fire departments expect. Your own city may have different numbers, so always check.

Any interruption of a fire protection system for inspection, testing, maintenance or repairs counts as a temporary shutdown.
During a shutdown, alternative measures must keep the building as safe as it was meant to be.
When any fire protection system is shut down or impaired, a fire watch must start immediately.
A fire watch is short term only. The owner, operator or management company must arrange the permanent repair.
The alternative measures belong in the building's Fire Safety Plan.

Who must be told

In Medicine Hat, if a fire alarm or detection system, or part of one, is out of service for more than 2 hours for any reason, the fire service must be called. Follow your site's procedure for telling the alarm monitoring company too.

Warning the occupants

Post signs in common areas that say which system is out of order. Display the evacuation procedures from the approved Fire Safety Plan next to them.

Lesson 3: Patrols, equipment and the log

A fire watch is done by a dedicated person. That may be an occupant, an employee or a contracted security guard. In Medicine Hat, at least one qualified person must do fire watch duties 24 hours a day in the unprotected area.

Your equipment

A way to call the fire service, such as a phone or radio
An air horn, whistle or other approved alarm
A flashlight
A clipboard, pen, the fire watch duties and the log sheet
Keys or access codes for every room and space
A floor plan, if one is available

Know where every portable extinguisher is and how to use it.

Each round

Tour the entire building every hour, or more often if your fire department or site says so.
Look for smoke and fire, and listen for smoke detectors sounding inside rooms.
Check exits, the routes to exits and corridors for blockages, and make sure exit doors work.
Record the time of each round on the log sheet and sign or initial each entry.

Lesson 4: Hot work and Alberta workplace safety rules

Hot work is work such as welding, cutting or grinding that makes sparks or flames. Medicine Hat's fire watch duties say hot work is not allowed where sprinkler protection is impaired, unless approved precautions are in place.

Alberta's OHS Code also deals with fire. Part 10, Fire and Explosion Hazards, includes a section on hot work (section 169). Part 7, Emergency Preparedness and Response, requires an emergency response plan (section 115). Ask to see the plan for your site.

Fires that must be reported to OHS

An employer must call the OHS Contact Centre (1-866-415-8690) as soon as possible if an unplanned or uncontrolled fire, explosion or flood causes, or could cause, a serious injury or illness. The same applies when a worker dies or is admitted to hospital because of a work incident.

The scene of these incidents must not be disturbed. The exceptions are helping an injured person, preventing more injuries, protecting property that is in danger, or having permission from an OHS officer or police officer.

Lesson 5: If you find fire, and ending the watch

When the alarm is out, you are the alarm. Medicine Hat's fire watch duties set out these steps:

Alert the occupants with your air horn, whistle or approved alarm.
Call 911 from a safe area.
Fight a small fire only if it is safe to do so.
Help occupants evacuate.

The general flow of an evacuation that a fire watch guard helps start.

Raise the alarm and warn everyone in the building.
Help people who need assistance to leave.
Leave by the nearest safe exit.
Gather at the assembly point.
Count people and report to the fire department.

After a fire

In Alberta, fires that result in death, injury or dollar loss must be reported to the Fire Commissioner. These reports are filed by safety codes officers in the fire discipline and by insurance companies, not by guards. Your clear notes and log help them.

Ending the fire watch

The fire watch may be cancelled only after someone has confirmed that the fire protection system is fully working again. Then the fire service is called back, and the monitoring station is told if the system is monitored. Record the end time and hand in your log.