Deputy fire chief retires after 40 years with Fort Simpson, N.W.T., department

The deputy chief of the volunteer fire department in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., is retiring after 40 years of service. 

Pat Rowe joined the department in the 1980s. He said it was a natural fit after firefighting in the Armed Forces, and it was also a great way to give back to the community.

"It's a job that needs to be done, and I just happened to have enough training to make a difference," he recalled. "It's a pretty good feeling when you're able to help." 

Rowe started as a firefighter and eventually worked his way up to fire chief, a position he held until 2013 when he was diagnosed with brain cancer. That diagnosis didn't stop Rowe from working with the department, though — he just moved into the role of deputy fire chief, and kept on going.

"You have to live every day for what it is," he said. "As soon as you stop, life stops."

Rowe said the decision to step down as chief was hard but he said the department supported him all the way through his illness. He's grateful, but he wasn't surprised.

"It's a good group of people throughout the entire Northwest Territories. Whether it be Yellowknife [firefighters] working full time, or all the other communities with volunteers," he said.

Rowe grew up in Hay River, N.W.T., but moved to Fort Simpson with his family when he was still a child. It's a community he cares a lot about and he's got a lot of praise for his fellow volunteer firefighters, people he considers family. 

"It's a great group," he said. "It is the people that make it — all the people I've worked with are a hundred percent all the time," he said.

Rowe said volunteer firefighting in the North is a unique experience, and he believes firefighters don't get enough credit for the work they do.

He recalled a time when an Edmonton fire chief was visiting the department and an emergency call came in about a jet that was filling with smoke and had to make an emergency landing in Fort Simpson.

The incident turned out fine, but Rowe said there was a moment of disbelief from the Edmonton fire chief when he realized how few responders were on hand to deal with the emergency at the airport. The same situation in his city would have had a much larger response team, he told Rowe.

"You've got somebody from the big city saying, 'wow,'" Rowe said. "In the North, we have what we've got, and we have to make do."

Current Deputy Chief Roger Pilling has been working with the volunteer fire department for 34 years. He said that the department is going to miss Rowe's skills and his leadership.