The Montreal Fire Department says it responded to more outdoor fires in 2025 than in the year before, largely because there are more homeless encampments in the city. Department Director Richard Liebmann presented the department’s 2025 activity report in a public assembly on Thursday evening. He said encampment fires are often minor and that the department, in partnership with the municipal government and police force, are working within the encampments to curb them. He also said fire fighters are regularly responding to climate-related emergencies. The department had to activate its disaster prevention and emergency response plan 14 times in 2025. Liebmann said 60 per cent of last year’s fire department responses were first-responder calls such as medical emergencies. That’s a jump from last year, which Liebmann attributed to the city’s aging population and an increase in chronic diseases. In 2025, the Montreal Fire Department added 11 firefighters and five staff members to its technical services division to carry out the decontamination of firefighting gear and personal protective equipment. “As you know, we face major challenges with cancer prevention, and we’re devoting a great deal of energy and resources to it,” Liebmann said. In 2022, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified firefighting as a recognized human carcinogen. Health Canada’s website says firefighters have a nine per cent higher risk of being diagnosed with cancer and a 14 per cent higher risk of dying from cancer than the general public. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 4, 2026.
