About US
“Going Abroad to Train Local Heroes” is more than a tagline – it’s our mission in action.
Since 2012, FRITA’s volunteers have crossed borders with one purpose: to share hard‑won firefighting skills where they matter most. “Going Abroad to Train Local Heroes” is more than a tagline – it’s our mission in action.
Canadian volunteer firefighters travel to partner nations, stand shoulder‑to‑shoulder with local crews, and deliver practical, hands‑on training that builds lasting capacity. We don’t parachute in with solutions; we listen, adapt, and teach techniques that local teams can use tomorrow.
Through respectful partnerships, proven instructors, and decades of commitment, FRITA turns short deployments into long‑term strength for fire services and the communities they protect – empowering local heroes to save lives.
Our goal is to develop long term partnerships that will benefit your fire fighters and the communities they serve.
The Board
The Board of FRITA is comprised of individuals with extensive international experience managing or leading cumulatively over 25 deployments of fire service professionals to El Salvador, Paraguay, Thailand, Peru, and Panama. The origins of our efforts date back to 1994 with an initial shipment of donated equipment to El Salvador. Our belief is that shared knowledge through training has the greatest value for our brothers and sisters serving their communities as first responders in countries around the world. By establishing true partnerships with each recipient country’s national fire service agencies, we aim to meet their needs in a collaborative manner. Our teams of Canadian fire service instructors come from a wide variety of fire departments from across the country.
Mayor Ken Sim Proclaims December 15, 2025 as
“Fire Rescue International Training Association Day”
The City of Vancouver proudly recognizes Fire Rescue International Training Association (FRITA), founded in 2012 by six dedicated firefighters including Vancouver’s own Jeffrey Moore and Brian Hutchinson.
What They Do FRITA delivers specialized firefighter training to developing countries across Latin America, improving public safety and saving lives internationally.
Canadian Spirit in Action Hundreds of Canadian firefighters volunteer their vacation time and personal funds to deploy on these missions—embodying the generosity and care that define our nation.
Impact to Date
- Hundreds of Canadian firefighters deployed
- Thousands of international firefighters trained
- Countless lives saved
Our History
The origins of our efforts date back to 1994 with an initial shipment of donated equipment to El Salvador.
Our belief is that shared knowledge through training has the greatest value for our brothers and sisters serving their communities as first responders in countries around the world.
By establishing true partnerships with each recipient country’s national fire service agencies, we aim to meet their needs in a collaborative manner. Our deployment teams of fire service instructors come from a diverse variety of fire departments from across Canada and we also have instructors from the United States of America, Panama and Chile.
Our goal is to develop long term partnerships that will benefit firefighters and the communities they serve.
Associations
