Wynne Powell on putting out fires

In Wynne Powell’s office, beside the family portraits and the photos of handshakes with Bill Clinton, sits a little red fire engine. No, the 60-year-old CEO of London Drugs isn’t ¬indulging in a childhood fantasy of being a fireman. He doesn't have to.

In spite of the heavy hours involved in his day job and the various committees and boards he’s on, Powell has also found time to be a member of the South Pender Island fire department. He held the post for 18 years, and though he relinquished it four years ago, he still found himself, last July, on Sonora Island, battling a blaze through the night.

The fire broke out near the Sonora Resort owned by the HY Louie Group, which also owns London Drugs. “I got a phone call when I was on holidays. It was 5:10 Monday night. My wife looked at me when I hung up and said ‘You’re not going to be comfortable until you get up there,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, you’re right.’”

Powell was on the scene by 7 p.m. “I fought that fire for about nine hours. We fought it until one in the morning, then went and slept for six hours, and went back.”

It’s a story he recounts with a touch of pride, but also unaffected nonchalance. Getting involved is all about giving back to the community, he insists; the fire department on South Pender, his main residence for 34 years, just sprang up out of necessity. “There was a place called Bedwell Resort and it burned for the second time. We had trouble with the pumps, and that was the catalyst that caused a number of us to say we had to get a fire department.”

He’s also at pains to point out that, as an accountant, his main job – apart from helping battle blazes a handful of times a year – was to keep track of the books, generate funding and keep the station afloat. When pressed, though, he does admit that the adrenaline-¬fuelled drama of it all is pretty compelling. And after a four-year hiatus, Powell says he was pleasantly surprised at his ability to hold his own alongside younger, fitter guys. While he stresses that he can’t technically be considered a firefighter anymore, as he has not kept up with the training, he admits he wouldn’t hesitate to help out again if an extra set of arms were required.