First responders safety awareness

We’ve always worked closely with first responders in the communities we serve. Our awareness programs for first responders are created to help them stay safe when approaching emergency situations involving natural gas or electricity.

Safety awareness programs

The programs include videos and discussion guides that support facilitators teaching first responders about the basic properties of electricity and natural gas, and how to approach emergency situations safely.

These programs meet the requirements outlined in the British Columbia Fire Service Minimum Training Standards – Structure Firefighters Competency and Training Playbook.

Electrical safety education

We’ve developed two electricity safety courses for first responders. Both provide an overview of the safety issues first responders need to be aware of when approaching an electricity incident.

This 20-40-minute course includes an overview of:

  • the electrical system
  • effects of electricity on the body
  • the principles of touch, step and ground gradient
  • limits of approach
  • how to stay safe while approaching an electricity incident

Sign into the FortisBC eLearning site to access this course. Note: If it’s your first time visiting this portal, you’ll need to create a new account.

This course includes a series of videos from the Canadian Electricity Association and discussion guides developed by FortisBC.

Watch the videos and use the course materials below:

Natural gas safety education 

Responding to Natural Gas Emergencies is a course we created in partnership with the Canadian Gas Association and Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs, to provide safety information for first responders.

This course will be provided to all fire training officers upon request. It includes a discussion of the properties and behaviour of natural gas and how it’s distributed, as well as interactive sessions using video scenarios of emergency response situations and procedures.

We're here to help

For more information, contact Taras Sandulak.