The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has announced the appointment of Laura King as Regional Director for Canada to champion building, fire, and life safety activities across the country. She will take over from Shayne Mintz who retired in 2021 after nearly 10 years representing NFPA in Canada.

King’s role will see her work with the fire and life safety community to advance safety in Canada by cultivating strong alliances, working with existing and new stakeholders, advocating for public education, and representing NFPA in local, provincial, and national circles.

She began representing NFPA in 2017 in public education and has worked with fire departments, associations, and First Nations groups from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland, and the northern territories, to develop community risk reduction programs, build fire-prevention and life-safety education strategies, and create and disseminate consistent and accurate fire and life safety messaging.

Lorraine Carli, vice president of Outreach and Advocacy for NFPA, commented: “Laura has the skill set and experience to collaborate with a broad range of professionals across Canada.

“Her experiences representing NFPA in public education, and her strong connection to the fire safety community in Canada, make her well suited for this important role.”

King, a native of Nova Scotia and resident of the Greater Toronto Area, was editor of Fire Fighting in Canada and Canadian Firefighter magazines for 10 years before representing NFPA in 2017. She was a reporter and editor for more than 20 years for newspapers and magazines across Canada and the United States. King has a degree from Carleton University in journalism, political science, and public administration. She is a certified fire- and life-safety educator and holds several other certifications.