Oakville Fire plans a 2027 tool for residents who could not escape a house fire on their own
A Council request for a registry of homes where residents cannot evacuate on their own will be met through Oakville Fire's new records platform, whose Community Connect module lets residents share their needs. It launches in the first half of 2027.
The details
What Council asked for
Oakville Council had asked staff to report back on a safety protocol for people in private homes who are unable to evacuate on their own. The request had several parts: a communication strategy developed with community agencies that serve vulnerable residents, on how to build a personal fire escape plan; information on subsidies available for renovations; and a registry of dwellings where residents have mobility issues.
The item was one of the outstanding entries on Council's tracking list for the 2022–2026 term. On September 28 Council voted to sunset that tracking list effective November 15, 2026, and Fire Chief Paul Boissonneault's memo — listed on the same agenda — is the department's update before the term ends.
What the Fire Chief reported
The memo says the Ontario Fire Code (Division B, Section 2.8) does not regulate emergency procedures for accessibility in single-family homes, and that there is no legislative requirement or standard program for this in similar large urban fire departments in Ontario. Preliminary work, including an information report to the Town's Accessibility Committee, was done before the COVID-19 pandemic, but the memo says agency support and progress did not materialize as first planned.
Instead, the department is folding the idea into new software. In the first and second quarters of 2027, Oakville Fire is launching FirstDue, a single platform for its records management with modules for service delivery. One of those modules, Community Connect, allows residents to upload critical details about their specific functional needs so the department can ensure their safety and an appropriate emergency response.
Community Connect has many of the desired functions and outcomes sought in the original report and provides a robust registry, communication platform, and user driven experience that is easy to use, and maintain.
What happens next
The memo says many elements of Council's original request will be achieved once the program is in place, and that Council will get an update at that time. It does not say how residents will sign up, what information they will be asked for, or how it will be protected; those details have not been published. The department says it is committed to public education, fire prevention and digital tools for residents with mobility and other impairments.