After three years of call volume increases, the Port Alberni Fire Department saw a "slight decrease" for calls in 2024.
According to the department, 2024 saw a two percent decrease in call volume. In 2024, the Port Alberni Fire Department responded to 2,759 calls for service, compared to 2,823 calls for service in 2023.
More than half of these calls (1,847 calls in 2024) were medical first responder calls. The fire department also responded to 46 structure fires and 150 motor vehicle incidents.
The department noted that the call volume between 2019 and 2024 has increased by a total of 76 percent (with the exception of 2020, which is considered an "anomaly" due to COVID-19 restrictions).
Nearby, the Sproat Lake Volunteer Fire Department responded to 175 calls for service in 2024, which is a record for the department. Thirty-nine of these were for automatic aid assistance.
The Beaver Creek Volunteer Fire Department responded to a total of 219 calls in 2024, which is a 57 percent increase compared to 2023 (139 calls).
The Cherry Creek Volunteer Fire Department, meanwhile, responded to 82 calls for service in 2024 and celebrated the arrival of a new fire engine: Engine 33.
