Deputy Chief Karen Fry

In 2011, the Surrey Fire Service Emergency Communications Center managed over 58,000 incident calls. More than half of those calls were for the Surrey Fire Service and the rest for fire departments across British Columbia. The dedicated dispatchers of the Surrey Fire Service are the people that provide the vital link between the 911-caller and firefighters. Overseeing this essential service is Deputy Chief Karen Fry.
Starting out as an emergency dispatcher with Nanaimo Fire Rescue in 1999, Karen realized she had found a great career. She enjoyed the opportunity to serve the public and the fast paced environment as an exciting challenge. Her intelligence and ambition lead her to continue her education and rise to the position of Captain in charge of Infomatics and Communications. Her elevation marked a period of rapid growth for the Nanaimo Fire Rescue, during which time she oversaw the amalgamation of fire dispatch for 27 communities across the island.
In 2006, she accepted the position of Deputy Chief with the Surrey Fire Service. Her role with the department includes management of the Communications and Prevention Divisions as well as all the responsibilities of an Operational Duty Chief. From that moment, she has been building a noteworthy legacy in Surrey. In her first five years she grew the number of dispatch clients from six departments to 34. Thanks to these efforts, smaller departments with fewer resources get to benefit from a state of the art dispatch center. In addition, she has overseen the implementation of numerous technological advances to improve dispatching services, shorten fire department response time and increase firefighter safety.
When asked to comment on her success, the energetic mother of five credits two guiding principles. First, find the balance between your work and your life. Second, don’t accept limitations. “Quite often, people don’t see opportunities because they accept the limitations placed on them. If you can see beyond that, life is full of possibility.”

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BECOMING A CAREER FIREFIGHTER, PLEASE CONTACT TIM DYKEMAN OF SURREY FIRE SERVICE RECRUITMENT AT 604-543-6739.