With growth in homelessness last year, Saint John faced 31% increase in encampment fires
466 encampment fires in 2024, and the trend is continuing, fire chief says
The Saint John Fire Department says it is looking into a more specialized response to encampment fires in the city after a sharp increase in such fires last year.
In 2024, firefighters were dispatched to 466 fires at homeless encampments — 31 per cent more than in 2023.
"And we're starting to see a similar trend in 2025," fire Chief Rob Nichol said in a recent interview.
Nichol says the increasing number of fires creates a challenge for fire department resources.
"When we are responding to those fires that means those resources aren't available to respond to a larger structure fire, a medical call," he said.
Encampment fires are usually small and typically involve heating appliances used for warmth or cooking, and the numbers are generally highest in uptown and north end areas. They tend to happen in summer, with more people gravitating to shelters in winter.
Nichol has said before that these fire calls played a role in pushing department costs above its spending plans by nearly $500,000. The department has a $2.8 million budget for goods and service and a budget of about $22.5 million for wages and benefits.
Nichol said new equipment was also a factor in the increased costs.
"It's almost doubled in the last four to five years — a pumper that we could typically get for $800,000, now the equivalent vehicle would be $1.4 million," he said.
While resources aren't currently strained, the department is looking into "specialized responses" for encampment fires by examining how resources are used and whether more are needed.
"Is [a heavy apparatus] the best response? Do we use lighter vehicles? Is there a specific response group that responds to the encampment fires?"
Nichol said the department wants to gather more information before moving forward with a specific strategy.
Multiple deaths followed encampment fires in Saint John in 2024, prompting a public outcry for governments to respond.
The city has launched several housing programs since then and a Housing for All long-term strategy, which Nichol said he hopes will make a difference.
Leah Robichud, the assistant deputy chief, told Information Morning that the department will also be changing to a monthly reporting of fire statistics. The department already posts its annual fire statistics on the City of Saint John website.
Chiefs call for national fire administration
The Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs says that Saint John isn't alone in its concerns about encampment fires. The association conducts surveys annually and included encampment fires in its set of questions in 2023.
"We saw a staggering increase in [large cities]," said association president Ken McMullen. "Seventy-three per cent saw an increase in the responses to fires in homeless encampment areas across Canada."
The association is advocating a national fire administration that McMullen said would provide policy direction to provinces and territories on encampment fires and other fire safety subjects.
Among New Brunswick's largest cities, Saint John's department saw both the largest number of encampment fires and the largest increase in those fires last year.
In 2024, Moncton's fire department responded to 256 fire calls "related to social issues" ,which, a city spokesperson said included fires in encampments. This was an increase of just under five per cent from the year before.
Fredericton responded to 21 encampment fires in 2024, three more than the year before, according to city staff.
In 2024, according to the Human Development Council, each city saw an increase of at least 30 per cent in its population of chronically homeless people, with Moncton having the highest number, at more than 500.
Saint John had the highest increase in the province, at 273, more than double the previous year's number, with 24 per cent of those people living in encampments, according to the group's data.
Shelter resources not keeping up, researcher says
Housing researcher Julia Woodhall-Melnik said the fires at encampment sites pose significant risks to the safety of those living in tents, and Saint John's higher number of encampment fires simply stems from the high presence of encampments in the city.
She says this could be due to a number of factors, including Saint John generally having a lower median income than the other two major cities.
Woodhall-Melnik said shelter resources just haven't kept pace with how homelessness has grown.
"When the shelter spots aren't increasing at the rate of individuals who are experiencing homelessness is increasing, then that's when you tend to see greater increases in encampments," she said.
Woodhall-Melnik said that while Saint John does have shelters, efforts have to be targeted toward specific populations, such as shelters specifically for LGBTQ+ people, and offer space that allows couples to be near each other.
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With files from Information Morning Saint John