Yellowknife fire hall vehicles given ‘high contrast, safer’ rebrand

The City of Yellowknife has switched some of its fire hall vehicles to a red and black colour scheme that the municipality says is more distinctive than its former white and green.

In a Wednesday news release, the city said its fleet of emergency vehicles will “shift toward high-contrast, safer colour schemes.”

A pickup truck, an SUV and an ambulance are the first to bear the new liveries.

“Moving away from the division’s traditional white and green, these updated units adopt a new look, strengthening public recognition, reflecting the division’s comprehensive capabilities, and creating a strong, unified emergency presence across the community,” City Hall stated.

“Red reinforces the long-standing public association with fire and emergency response, while the red and black combination presents a professional and modern identity that residents can recognize quickly when assistance is needed.”

The city said the new design “does not incur additional costs to taxpayers” as it will be introduced only when vehicles are replaced. Whether specific incidents had prompted the change was unclear.

So far, none of the larger fire trucks operated by the division have a new livery.

The new vehicles have “upgraded high-intensity emergency lighting, updated sirens and reflective markings,” the city stated, while the ambulance has “an improved screen setup for better communication among response teams, upgraded shelving and storage, and a new stretcher for patient care and transport.”

The vehicles whose liveries have changed are now in line with colour schemes more often seen in southern Canada, such as the look of the Petrolia and North Enniskillen fire department where Yellowknife’s new fire chief, Jason Arns, previously worked.

“This was a deliberate decision,” Arns was quoted as saying.

“The new design strengthens public recognition, but more importantly, these vehicles represent a continued investment in operational readiness and firefighter safety.

“Our responsibility is to be prepared for every type of emergency and to ensure residents can immediately recognize when help has arrived.”