Otter Point Volunteer Fire Department

May 15, 2026

For Immediate Release

Leadership Transition at the Otter Point Volunteer Fire Department

The Otter Point Volunteer Fire Department announces the retirement of Fire Chief John McCrea, effective July 3, 2026, following 31 years of dedicated service to the department and the community of Otter Point.

Chief McCrea began his fire service career as a volunteer firefighter and rose through the ranks as Captain, Training Officer, Deputy Chief, and ultimately served two terms as Fire Chief. Throughout his career, he demonstrated unmatched dedication to the fire service, the members of the department, and the residents of Otter Point.

Chief McCrea leaves behind a lasting legacy within the department. His leadership, mentorship, and commitment to training helped build the Otter Point Training Centre into a facility recognized throughout the Province of British Columbia. For more than 20 years, he dedicated countless hours to developing and managing training opportunities that have benefited firefighters from across the region and province.

While retiring from the role of Fire Chief, John is not leaving the department entirely and will continue to support the department and incoming leadership in any way needed. His knowledge, experience, and continued involvement will remain a valued asset to the organization.

The members of the Otter Point Volunteer Fire Department would like to sincerely thank Chief McCrea for his decades of service, leadership, and commitment to the community. We wish him all the best in his retirement and many safe miles ahead riding his Harley.

The department is also pleased to announce that current Deputy Fire Chief Ben Patterson has been appointed as the next Fire Chief and will officially assume the role on July 3, 2026.

Chief Patterson brings 29 years of fire service experience, beginning at the age of 16 as a volunteer firefighter with Sooke Fire Rescue, where he dedicated 21 years of service. He also brings eight years of full-time career experience with the Otter Point Volunteer Fire Department.

Throughout his career, Chief Patterson has demonstrated strong local knowledge, a collaborative leadership approach, and a continued focus on supporting members while serving the Otter Point community. During his time as Deputy Fire Chief, he has been actively involved in department operations, training, incident command, and oversight of facilities and equipment.

Chief Patterson has demonstrated a strong understanding of volunteer fire service delivery, firefighter training standards, and the regulatory framework that guides the fire service, including the Fire Safety Act, WorkSafeBC requirements, and CRD bylaws. His leadership approach emphasizes integrity, accountability, communication, teamwork, firefighter safety, operational effectiveness, and community well-being. He is committed to supporting members while continuing to build on the strengths and traditions of the department.

Please join us in congratulating Chief Patterson on his appointment and in thanking Chief McCrea for his extraordinary service and leadership to the Otter Point community.

Although Camp Fires will once again be permitted on Friday May 15 at noon, we are strongly recommending that if you chose to have a campfire, that you ensure that it is in a contained pit, and when you are done with the fire make sure it is dead out, cold to the touch. Included with Campfires, Wood Fired Hot tubs, and Pizza oven will be permitted once again.

Coastal Fire Centre enacting Open Fire Prohibitions

PARKSVILLE – Effective at 12:00 p.m. (noon) PDT on Thursday, May 7, 2026, most open burning activities will be prohibited throughout the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction, with exceptions for Haida Gwaii. This prohibition is being enacted to help reduce human-caused wildfires and for public safety.

Category 1, Category 2 and Category 3 open fires will be prohibited throughout the Coastal Fire Centre’s jurisdiction, with the exception that only Category 2 and Category 3 fires will be prohibited in the Haida Gwaii Forest District (Category 1 campfires will be permitted). This prohibition will be in place until October 31, 2026, or until the order is rescinded.

A map of the affected areas is available online:

This prohibition applies to all areas in the Fire Centre that are outside of municipal boundaries.

In addition, this prohibition applies to the following types of land within municipal boundaries:

• Parks, conservancies and recreation areas (Park Act);
• Recreation sites, recreation trails, interpretive forest sites and trail-based recreation areas (Forest and Range Practices Act);
• Ecological reserves (Ecological Reserve Act);
• Wildlife management areas (Wildlife Act); and
• Private managed forest land (Private Managed Forest Land Act).

Municipalities may follow BC Wildfire Service prohibitions or may impose different prohibitions based on conditions in their local area. If you are in a municipality, be sure to check if local prohibitions are in place. If you are within a regional district or improvement district, this prohibition applies as well as any local prohibition issued by the local authority. BC Parks follows BC Wildfire Service prohibitions.

Specifically, this prohibition refers to the following activities:

“Category 1 open fire” which means a campfire that is:

1. No larger than 0.5 metres high by 0.5 metres wide,
2. Used for recreational purposes or by a First Nation for ceremonial purposes.

“Category 2 open fire” which means an open fire, other than a category 1 campfire, that burns:

1. Material in one pile not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width,
2. Material concurrently in 2 piles each not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width, or
3. Stubble or grass over an area that does not exceed 0.2 ha.

“Category 3 open fire” which means an open fire that burns:

1. Material concurrently in 3 or more piles each not exceeding 2 m in height and 3 m in width,
2. Material in one or more piles each exceeding 2 m in height or 3 m in width,
3. One or more windrows, each not exceeding 200 m in length or 15 m in width,
4. Stubble or grass over an area exceeding 0.2 ha.

Also prohibited are the activities listed below (Wildfire Act, Section 12):

• Fireworks; as defined in the Fireworks Act;
• Binary exploding targets;
• Sky Lanterns
• Wood fired hot tubs, wood fired pizza ovens and other wood fired devices unless vented through a structure that has a flue and is incorporated in a building;
• Burn barrels or burn cages of any size or description;
• Controlled air incinerators
• Air curtain burners; and
• Carbonizers.

Please review the full list of prohibited activities and equipment in your area here.

This prohibition does not include the use of outdoor stoves. As per the Wildfire Regulation, an outdoor stove is a CSA-rated or ULC-rated device used outdoors for cooking, heat or ambiance that burns charcoal briquettes, liquid fuel or gaseous fuel, and has a flame height that is less than 15 cm tall.

Open fire is the largest cause of human-caused fires provincially. Human-caused wildfires are entirely preventable and may divert crucial resources from naturally occurring and/or existing wildfires. Prohibitions are a useful tool used to reduce the likelihood of more human-caused fires in anticipation of increased lightning-caused fires or during critical fire situations.

Anyone found in contravention of an open fire prohibition may be issued a violation ticket for $1,150, required to pay an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 or, if convicted in court, fined up to $100,000 and/or sentenced to one year in jail. If the contravention causes or contributes to a wildfire, the person responsible may be ordered to pay all firefighting and associated costs.

The Coastal Fire Centre covers all the area west of the height of land on the Coast Mountain Range from the U.S.-Canada border at Manning Park, including Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park in the north, the Sunshine Coast, the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and Haida Gwaii.

To report a wildfire, call 1 800 663-5555 toll-free or *5555 on a cell phone or report via the BC Wildfire Service App. For the latest information on current wildfire activity, burning restrictions and other related advisories, go to: http://www.bcwildfire.ca