Chief of the RDEK’s Elk Valley and South Country Rural Fire and Rescue Service, Dave Boreen, will be moving into a new role with the Office of the Fire Commissioner.
RDEK officials said Boreen has more than 30 years of firefighting experience, including work as a volunteer chief for 10 years and 13 years in the position he just left.
“We want to thank Chief Boreen for his years of dedicated service to our communities,” says RDEK Electoral Area B Director Stan Doehle.
“Beyond the hundreds, if not thousands, of lives he has touched along the way, he has shown innovation, passion and leadership in moving our rural fire service forward.”
Members of the Jaffray, Baynes Lake, Elko and Hosmer Fire Departments lined the road to the Jaffray Fire Hall with firetruck lights flashing to give Boreen a salute before his last official practice on October 21st, 2021.
“We are so grateful to have had someone of Dave’s calibre serving our region for so many years and are incredibly proud of what he has accomplished during his time with the RDEK’s Fire Service,” added Doehle.
“While we will miss him immensely, we wish him every success in his new career where he will continue to contribute to fire safety in the East Kootenay as a Fire Service Advisor with the Office of the Fire Commissioner.”
According to the RDEK, Boreen was a big part of establishing a new fire department in Elko.
He was also an advocate for Sprinkler Protection Units for rural areas and expanded training in wildland interface firefighting.
Over the summer he was deployed through the Office of the Fire Commissioner as a Sprinkler Protection Unit Specialist for large wildfires in the Vernon and West Kootenay areas.