This article is part of a series of posts led by CHASI Research Associate Len Garis, who has been a long-time partner of CHASI through his work with the National Indigenous Fire Safety Council. His guest blog posts explore a wide range of topics related to firefighting and firefighters in Canada. You can read all of his guest articles at this link.
CHASI’s collaborations with the NIFSC, and many of their other research works, can be found on our NIFSC Publications page. For questions about the NIFSC and their work, please visit their contact page.
Burn Injuries in Underserved Communities: An Equity Lens for Canada’s Fire Services
By Len Garis & Mandy Desautels
Recent Canadian research examining burn injuries in underserved populations is offering fire services a clearer understanding of why certain communities face disproportionate fire‑related risks. The work, led by Dr. Catherine Liao, whose background includes more than a decade establishing community‑based burns and fire‑prevention programs in Sierra Leone, provides a grounded and practical lens for fire departments seeking to address inequities in fire safety. Her doctoral research at the University of British Columbia focuses on First Nations communities and people living in unstable housing—two groups that experience significantly higher burn‑injury burdens and whose experiences have historically been under‑represented in fire‑service literature.
Burn injuries are among the most preventable forms of trauma encountered by fire services. Yet despite advances in fire safety, burn care, and prevention technologies, the distribution of risk remains uneven. The communities most affected by burns often face broader social and material disadvantages that shape their exposure to fire hazards, their ability to prevent injuries, and their access to care after an incident. Understanding these structural conditions is essential for fire services seeking to reduce harm and improve outcomes.
Structural Inequities in First Nations Communities
National data show that Indigenous Peoples in Canada experience fire‑related mortality at rates several times higher than non‑Indigenous populations, with the risk increasing further for First Nations people living on reserves. This disparity is not new, but the research brings renewed attention to the structural conditions that sustain it.
Several factors contribute to elevated fire risk in First Nations communities:
- Under‑resourced fire protection services. Many communities lack adequate funding for fire departments, equipment, and training.
- Aging or unsafe housing stock. Older homes, overcrowding, and limited access to safe heating systems increase fire hazards.
- Geographic barriers. Remote locations can delay emergency response times and complicate fire suppression.
- Limited access to fire‑safety equipment. Smoke alarms, extinguishers, and fire‑safe heating devices are not consistently available.
- Historical and ongoing impacts of colonialism. Long‑standing inequities in infrastructure, governance, and funding continue to shape fire risk.
- Insufficient culturally safe fire‑prevention education. Prevention programs are not always designed with cultural relevance or community context in mind.
The research challenges traditional explanations that attribute fire injuries in Indigenous communities to alcohol or substance use. Such interpretations overlook the structural realities that shape risk and can reinforce harmful stereotypes. For fire services, this shift in perspective is essential. Prevention strategies must be grounded in an understanding of systemic inequities rather than individual blame.
Burn Risks in Unstable Housing Environments
The second population examined in the research includes individuals living in unstable housing—single‑room occupancy hotels, homeless encampments, makeshift shelters, and street‑based environments. These settings create a complex mix of fire hazards that differ significantly from those found in conventional residential environments.
Common risk factors include:
- Improvised heating sources such as candles, open flames, or portable stoves
- Overcrowding and limited ventilation
- Flammable materials used for shelter or insulation
- Substance use that may impair judgment or increase vulnerability
- Mental‑health challenges that complicate risk awareness
- Lack of access to safe cooking or heating equipment
Accidental fires in encampments are particularly common during winter months, when individuals rely on improvised heating to survive cold temperatures. Firefighters in major Canadian cities are increasingly responding to fires in encampments, and the research underscores the need for trauma‑informed approaches that recognize the broader social conditions shaping these incidents.
Burn survivors in unstable housing environments often face discrimination, stigmatization, and barriers to care. These challenges can prolong recovery, increase the likelihood of reinjury, and reduce trust in emergency responders. Fire services benefit from understanding these dynamics when designing prevention strategies and when interacting with residents during emergency response.
Gaps in Traditional Burns Research
A central theme emerging from the work is the absence of structural determinants of health in traditional burns research. Much of the existing literature focuses on incidence and prevalence—how many injuries occur and where—but rarely examines why certain populations remain at disproportionate risk.
When research fails to account for inequities, prevention strategies tend to focus narrowly on individual behaviour. This approach is insufficient in communities where residents may lack access to safe housing, reliable heating, or functioning smoke alarms. Advising individuals to “cook safely” or “install smoke alarms” does little when the underlying conditions make these actions impossible.
The research also cautions against using race or genetics as explanatory factors in burn‑injury disparities. Such framing can obscure the role of systemic conditions and perpetuate scientific racism. Fire services benefit from prevention frameworks that acknowledge the influence of poverty, racism, colonial history, and jurisdictional neglect.
A Methodology Grounded in Lived Experience
The study is informed by critical ethnography, a qualitative method designed to illuminate how power structures shape everyday experiences. Fieldwork included participant observation in a First Nations community, shadowing firefighters in high‑risk neighbourhoods, and conducting interviews with burn survivors, community leaders, and frontline responders.
This approach provides fire services with insights that are often missing from quantitative studies. It captures how people perceive risk, how they navigate unsafe environments, and how they experience emergency response and recovery. These perspectives can inform more effective and culturally safe prevention strategies.
Critical ethnography also emphasizes reflexivity—recognizing how the researcher’s own position influences the research process. This attention to power dynamics strengthens the credibility of the findings and ensures that community voices are not overshadowed by institutional perspectives.
Implications for Fire Services
The findings point toward several practical directions for fire services across Canada:
Equity‑oriented prevention
Prevention programs should reflect the realities of underserved communities. This includes culturally safe education, interventions that address structural barriers, and programs co‑developed with community leaders.
Strengthened partnerships with Indigenous communities
Collaboration with First Nations leadership is essential to improving fire protection, training, and equipment access. Fire services can play a role in advocating for equitable funding and supporting community‑driven safety initiatives.
Trauma‑informed response in unstable housing environments
Firefighters responding to encampment fires benefit from training that recognizes the social and health challenges faced by residents. Trauma‑informed approaches can improve safety, reduce conflict, and strengthen trust.
Advocacy for safe housing
Fire chiefs and municipal leaders can play a key role in advocating for improved housing conditions, which are foundational to fire safety. Safe housing is one of the most effective fire‑prevention strategies available.
Support for community‑based research
Fire services can contribute to equity‑oriented research by sharing incident data, participating in qualitative studies, and supporting survivor‑centered approaches. Community‑based research strengthens prevention strategies and ensures they reflect lived realities.
Moving Forward
This body of work provides fire services with a new lens for understanding burn injuries—one that recognizes them as symptoms of deeper inequities rather than isolated incidents. It reinforces the idea that fire prevention is not only a technical practice but also a matter of social justice.
Canada’s fire services have always adapted to emerging risks. Today, the challenge is to address inequity itself. By embracing equity‑driven practice, fire departments can help ensure that every community—regardless of history, geography, or socioeconomic status—has the opportunity to live safely and thrive.
Authors
Len Garis is director of research for the National Indigenous Fire Safety Council, Ret. Fire Chief for the city of Surrey, B.C., Research Associate – University of the Fraser Valley associate scientist emeritus with the B.C. Injury Research and Prevention Unit. Contact him at lwgaris@outlook.com.
Mandy Desautels is Chief Administrative Officer at the National Indigenous Fire Safety Council. Prior to joining NIFSC, she worked for BC Emergency Health Services and prominent NGOs. Contact her at mandy.desautels@indigenousfiresafety.ca.