Fire Chief Mike McKinlay Retires
DUNCAN – After serving with the Duncan Fire Department for 34 years, 13 years in the capacity of Fire Chief, Fire Chief Mike McKinlay has retired.
Mike has been a tremendous leader, following in the footsteps of Glenn Mackie who was Fire Chief when he first started with the Fire Department. The demands on Fire Chiefs have been ever increasing with the changing complexities and requirements of the fire service. Mike has been up to the challenge of leading the department through these, as well as through the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing opioid crisis.
Since 1999, Mike has served as 3rd Lieutenant, 2nd Captain, Deputy Fire Chief, and in 2008, he was appointed Fire Chief. Mike’s great grandfather, James Rutledge, was one of the first Fire Chiefs of the Duncan Fire Department, his great uncles Owen Evans was Deputy Chief, and Bob Evans was a volunteer fireman for many years.
Mike has also served the Cowichan Valley as an ice hockey coach as well as a softball coach for the Duncan Junior Baseball Association (DJBA), serving as President for several years. Mike was head coach for the DJBA in 2006 when the Bantam AA players brought home the BC Provincial Championship and the Western Canadian Championship.
Mike will be missed by all and we take this opportunity to publicly thank him for his many years of dedicated service to the City of Duncan.
