CENTRAL MANITOULIN—During a meeting of the Central Manitoulin Safety, Security and Health Committee, attendees learned that the moving of a pumper truck from the Sandfield Firehall did not mean the hall was closed. The meeting was well attended, with 17 members of the public there.
Among the good news delivered to the committee was that two new firefighter applications have been submitted, a third having been pulled due to the applicant being too young. Unfortunately, that still left the Sandfield area with only one qualified volunteer firefighter.
“I’d like to address the elephant in the room and that is the Big Lake Sandfield Fire Hall,” said Councillor Linda Farquhar, “and the fire protection in Ward 3. And that is why a lot of these fine people are here today.”
“So, number one question is, why was council never informed that the final piece of firefighting equipment, a pumper, housed in the fire hall at Sandfield, Big Lake was moved and never returned. No one was informed until I happened to hear about it from a taxpayer,” she said. “I know your answer will be that there are not enough volunteer firefighters to man the truck. However, we have been managing with one for a while now and I wonder why this could not continue?”
“Number two, many residents in Ward 3 live beyond the 13-kilometre limits from that active fire hall, thus, their insurance rates will increase,” said Councillor Farquhar. “How fair is that to Ward 3 people?”
“Number three, I do not think that it is the residents of Ward 3’s duty to have to recruit volunteer firefighters,” she continued. “This should be a public relations job for the fire chief, his captains and dedicated long-term volunteers. Let’s work on a solution to this problem before there is a serious fire and even a loss of life. “
CAO Denise Deforge interjected that “Phil did come to me right before the last Security and Health meeting. I discussed moving the equipment and I agreed with him. He had discussed it with the captains and it was in agreement that the equipment was better utilized at other halls. I agree with them, and I supported his decision, and I still support his decision. It was meant to be announced that the last Safety, Security and Health meeting, but unfortunately that meeting was cancelled.”
CAO Deforge apologized for not sending out a notification to councillors. “This falls on my shoulders,” she said. “I should have done more notification.”
Committee Chair Rose Diebolt had to caution members of the public that they could not ask questions or make delegations at the meeting. “This isn’t a venue for public discussion right now,” she said.
“I do stand behind my decision,” said Fire Chief Philip Gosse. “I don’t take my decision lightly.” He noted that he and his captains have 120 years of volunteer service. “I take their recommendation with my input.” Together, they decided that it was in the best interest of the community and fire coverage to move the pumper. “We feel that it’s the best use of our apparatus and the best use of our volunteers,” he said, noting that the vehicle has wheels and can be moved back should the number of volunteers in the area increase.
“I do not forget Sandfield,” said the fire chief. “I lived in Sandfield, Sandfield has a big heart, a big part of my heart.” But he noted that his responsibility is to the entire community.
Committee chair Diebolt noted that she is also a resident of Sandfield, “on Townline Road, which is about as far in Sandfield as you can get,” she said. “I knew with the impact of this decision would be on me personally as a ratepayer and I was still supportive of the decision of the fire chief because it maximizes our ability to use our equipment throughout municipality. And not just in the Sandfield ward, but all municipalities as a whole and that’s what Phil is doing, looking out for the entire community.”
Councillor Diebolt noted that “the firemen are active, they have gone out and tried to advertise for firefighters for the last, I gotta say, three years, at least.” She noted that advertisements have even been placed in the local newspaper. “Now, you cannot operate a truck unless you have at least a minimum of two firefighters, correct?”
“I don’t allow my guys to start at a fire without an ample secure, which I mean supporting water and guys,” agreed the fire chief.
“I’m not blaming anybody for it’s just a fact of the times,” said Councillor Brian Mitchell, “but if you want an active fire department out there, then everybody’s going to have to find volunteers that live out there or at least are willing to take the training because it’s mandatory training now. But until then, the truck is sitting out there collecting dust, and it’s the worst thing you can do to a big truck is let it sit there idle and not be in use, so the truck is going to get some use, hopefully not much.”
Chief Gosse went on to explain the concept behind mutual aid.
“We have seven trunks, 25 guys on a fire department if we utilize all our resources,” he said. “Mutual Aid is there when they are maxed out to their resource, then we can bring it about.” The agreement is in place for when a department needs more resources than they can bring to bear themselves.
As for volunteer recruitment, the fire chief noted that he has business cards that he hands out himself, “on a religious basis. Not because I’d like to have my name with fire chief underneath it, but I hand it out to people. I put an ad in the newspaper a couple of times. I tell people I meet we need volunteers here. If you know anyone, right? I’m always on it all the time, 24/7.”
“I’m focused on Big Lake/Sandfield,” he said. “I know we have a problem.”
But until the numbers of volunteers increases in the area, the best use for the equipment is to move it to where the firefighters can easily access it.
Among the challenges that were discussed was why the one firefighter could not get the truck in motion to the fire to meet up with the rest of the team responding.
“I will not allow them to even spread one bit of water yet,” noted Fire Chief Gosse. He explained that they would not be allowed to start attacking the fire until there were enough firefighters on the scene for both safety of the personnel and considerations on the water supply.
“We do not start spraying water unless we know we have water because of the worst-case scenario: you’re fighting the fire and you run out of the water and no one else is coming,” he said. “So, if you know no one’s coming, then you need to think before you open up the door, before you start spreading water. The worst case is actually the fire gets out of hand and you’re running out of water.”
“It’s all about the safety, our safety come first,” he said. “That’s how we work. Every single firefighter understands that we need to make sure you’re safe because we all need to be safe. That’s how we work it. And whether it’s one truck, or with seven trucks, doesn’t matter, you need to have the manpower.”
“This isn’t a closure of the hall,” noted the chief. “This is just the machinery isn’t there, temporarily, until volunteers can be found and trained. When that happens, the hall and the machinery will move back.”
