Fire Watch Services in Surrey and the Lower Mainland
Written by Paul Thandi, Operations Manager, On Guard Security Ltd. — 10+ years in BC security · Updated September 2026
When a fire alarm or sprinkler system goes out of service, the building is usually still occupied, so a person has to take over part of the work the system was doing. That is a fire watch: a trained guard walking a set route at set intervals, looking for fire and hazards, and raising the alarm straight away if something is wrong. On Guard Security Ltd. provides fire watch services in Surrey, Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Langley, Abbotsford and the Fraser Valley. This page covers when a watch is needed, what our guards do, how often they patrol, and what you get at the end.
Key takeaways
A fire watch is a temporary measure while fire protection is impaired. It does not replace a working alarm or sprinkler system.
In Richmond, the building owner or their representative must start the watch and keep it going until protection is fully restored.
Richmond sets patrol intervals by building use, from every 15 minutes to every 60 minutes, so “hourly” is not a safe default.
The written patrol log is the proof that the watch was done, for the fire department, the insurer and building management.
On Guard Security Ltd. staffs fire watches with licensed guards, on short notice, with 24/7 support.
Richmond Fire-Rescue describes a fire watch as a temporary safety measure used when a building’s normal fire or life-safety protection has been reduced, interrupted or taken out of service. Its fire watch page lists the situations that call for one: impaired fire-protection systems, interrupted power or water supply, blocked exits, and temporary hazards that increase the risk to occupants.
In practice, the requests we get across the Lower Mainland tend to follow a few patterns:
Fire alarm impairment — a failed panel, a system shut down for repair or a zone taken offline.
Sprinkler system out of service — repairs after a leak, maintenance or a water supply shut-off.
Construction and renovation — where permanent protection isn’t in place yet or is temporarily disabled, often alongside construction site security.
Hot work — welding, cutting or torch-on roofing, where the fire safety plan, insurer or fire department calls for a watch.
After a fire or flood — when systems are damaged and the building is still occupied or being restored.
A fire department order — where the local fire authority requires a watch.
Key insight: The trigger and the patrol interval come from your fire department and your building’s fire safety plan, not from the security company. Confirm them first, then tell us, and we staff to that requirement.
Richmond Fire-Rescue publishes patrol frequencies by how the building is used. They show how much the interval can vary, and why a flat “one round an hour” plan doesn’t fit every building.
Building use (Richmond)
Patrol interval
Institutional
Every 15 minutes at all times
Assembly
Every 15 minutes when occupied; every 60 minutes when unoccupied
Residential or sleeping
Every 15 minutes from 9 p.m. to 8 a.m.; every 30 minutes from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Other occupancies
Every 30 minutes when occupied; every 60 minutes when unoccupied
These are Richmond’s rules. If your building is in Surrey, Vancouver, Burnaby or elsewhere, check with that city’s fire department. A large residential building on 15-minute night rounds may need more than one guard to cover every floor in time.
Richmond expects fire watch personnel to be qualified and trained, assigned to the watch as their duty, and to stay in attendance while the watch is active. Our guards work to that standard:
Patrol a defined route covering every floor, stairwell, service room and hazard area, at the required interval.
Look for smoke, heat, odours and ignition sources, plus blocked exits, wedged fire doors and obstructed extinguishers.
Keep direct communication available at all times so emergency services can be called immediately.
Raise the alarm on any sign of fire, call 911, alert occupants if evacuation is needed and notify your contacts.
Record every round with the time, areas covered and observations.
Stay on post until the watch ends. A fire watch guard doesn’t leave to run errands or cover other duties.
Richmond requires patrols and observations to be recorded and the log kept available at the building. A fire watch is judged afterwards on that record. If the fire department asks whether the building was watched properly during a sprinkler outage, or an insurer reviews a claim, the log is the evidence. Ours records each round with times, areas and observations, signed by the guard on duty, and you receive the full record when the watch ends.
Key insight: A log that shows every round, including any that ran late, is worth more than one that looks perfect. It is the record the fire department and your insurer will read.
Fire watch needs rarely come with warning. A panel fails on a Friday evening, or a contractor finds a sprinkler main needs replacing, and the building needs a watch before anyone goes home. Our line is answered 24/7, and we can run continuous coverage through nights, weekends and holidays until the system is restored.
Fire watch services are billed hourly per guard. The total depends on the number of guards needed to meet the interval, the size of the building and how long the system is out of service. Every guard is licensed, and you can check licences with the province’s licence status verification tool. We’re WorkSafeBC compliant, fully insured and have worked in BC security for more than 10 years.
Tell us the address, what is out of service, the patrol interval your fire department requires and how long repairs should take. We’ll confirm guards and a start time. Call 778-990-5070 or contact us online.
Requirements are set locally. Richmond Fire-Rescue, for example, requires the building owner or their representative to start and maintain the watch until protection is restored, use qualified and trained personnel who stay in attendance, keep direct communication available, patrol at set intervals by building use, and keep a log at the building. Check with your own fire department.
What does a fire watch do?
A fire watch guard patrols the building at the required interval, looks for fire, smoke and hazards such as blocked exits, raises the alarm and calls 911 if anything is found, alerts occupants if evacuation is needed, and records every round in a log. It is a temporary measure and doesn’t replace a working fire-protection system.
What are the 5 steps of fire safety?
There is no single official five-step list; different organisations group fire safety steps differently. For a fire watch, the practical steps are to confirm the requirement and interval with the fire department, assign trained personnel, patrol every area on time, raise the alarm immediately if needed, and log each round until protection is restored.
How often does a fire watch guard patrol?
It depends on the building and the local fire department. Richmond sets intervals from every 15 minutes, for institutional buildings and residential buildings at night, up to every 60 minutes for some unoccupied buildings. We patrol at whatever interval your fire department or fire safety plan requires.
How quickly can you start a fire watch?
Fire watch needs are usually unplanned, so our line is answered 24/7 and we staff watches on short notice across Surrey, Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Langley, Abbotsford and the Fraser Valley. Call 778-990-5070 with the address, what is out of service and the required interval.
How are fire watch services priced?
They’re billed hourly per guard. The total depends on how many guards it takes to meet the patrol interval, the size of the building and how long the system is out of service. We quote on the building and the requirement.
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