The provincial government is auditing the Nova Scotia Firefighters School, according to a news release from the Halifax firefighters union.
They say the government has frozen funding to the school to do an audit that compares the cost of the service to the value it provides.
“Nova Scotia’s fire fighters deserve a training institution that is safe, well-managed, and committed to delivering the highest demands of professional instruction,” the union writes in the release.
The union says they’ve been calling for a review of the fire school’s “governance, accountability, and use of public funds” since the death of Skylar Blackie in 2019. He died after a fire extinguisher blew up in his face at the school. It was forced to pay $102,000 in fines as a result.
They say the temporary freeze in government funding is “necessary and justified” to make sure the school participates fully in the process. The union says they do not take the freeze lightly, because it will have significant impact on fire departments who rely solely on the school for training, but the audit will bring the changes that firefighters want and that the public expects.
It’s a step forward to those long-term improvements and accountability, the union says.
“It is our sincere hope that the audit will result in a stronger, more transparent institution that better serves both current and future fire fighters across the province.”
