USE OF GYM

Several people have responded to the poll over use of the gym. The consensus of most respondants so far is to have individuals pay by user. While we may also consider a family rate, it appears that this is the way we will go (unless I hear from a lot of you to go a different route). If this is in fact, the way we go, anyone using the gym will be required to pay an annual fee. The lock will be changed to accomodate only users that have paid. This money will be used to cover the cost of cleaning the gym, servicing the equipment and hopefully put a little something away to cover the cost of new or replacement equipment. This will all take place on January 1 provided I have no other overwhelming response.

Major Fire Lights up the NIght Sky

At 9:28 pm, on October 26, Sooke pagers were activated for a reported structure fire. First on scene, I observed a large, two storey barn at the Cherry Lane Equine Centre heavily involved in fire. Several people were on site, quickly moving horses away from the rapidly burning structure. Also seen were 3 or 4 people existing the top floor carrying objects in their hands. Later it was determined these young people had seen the fire while passing by, new of the barn and had rushed in to rescue a family of cats. (Note the stairs in the photo. This is where minutes earlier several people were seen existing with armloads of cats)

With the fire rapidly spreading and an all clear for anyone or animals in the building, I made the quick determination that this would be a defensive fire. Having been told there were upwards of 2000 bales of hay inside, it would not be possible to send firefighters inside. First arriving was Engine 2 with 3 firefighters. This team grabbed the hydrant at Sooke and Ludlow and laid in approximately 700 feet of 4 inch hose to reach the fire. Using a 2 1/2 inch hand line, the crew in the photo worked the B side of the structure. With assistance from Squad 2, the deck gun was also put into operation. Next arriving Engine 1 and Ladder 1 moved in. Ladder 1 set up for aerial master stream operations directly behind Engine 2. Engine 1 laid in an additional 2 1/2 line from the hydrant to supply additional water. Two more handlines were deployed, one to the A side and one on the D side. With all of the lines flowing and more water required, another water source was required. The decision to shut down Sooke Road was made and Engine 1 laid in another 4 inch supply line from the hydrant at the Shell station. Now flowing approximately 2000 gallons a minute, the water proved to be no match for the fire and the building was rapidly consumed despite the best efforts of all firefighters. An excavator was brought in to bring the remains of the building down and to access the hundreds of burning hay bales. Crews finally cleared the scene at 02:30 hours and left the station just after 3:00 am. The following morning, crews returned to the scene to extinguish the many hot spots still burning within the hay. A total of 24 firefighters manning 3 master streams, 1 - 2 1/2" and 2 - 1 3/4" lines proved no match for this massive fire. Crews were successful in keeping the fire from spreading and protecting exposures. Insurance investigators were on scene that afternoon. Suspected causes include the possibility of spontaneous combustion in a damp bale of hay or an electrical problem, however due to the extent of damage, the actual cause may prove difficult to determine.

For additional photos, check out Derek Lewers website at www.datastorms.com/barnfire1

Incident Response Poll

I thought I would provide some more clarity regarding the incident response poll I sent out by email yesterday. First off, we are not trying to stop the volunteer firefighters from attending, rather we are trying to eliminate the more mundane types of calls from your rather busy lives. If this goes ahead it would mean that the less serious medical calls, simple clean ups and burning complaints would not be paged out during regular work hours as the day staff would be able to handle these on their own. Not to say if a volunteer were in the station, they couldn't go - in fact I would encourage them to attend if they so choose. For any serious type call including MVIs, alarm bells, structure fires, brush fires, cardiac arrest etc an all call page will go out at ALL TIMES. If we are short on day staff due to a training course, holidays or sick days, an ALL PAGE will go out. If we find at the call or en route to the call additional information that more help will be needed, another page out will be initiated. If a second call comes in at the same time, another page will go out. So I ask you to think carefully and consider what I have mentioned above. If you would like to change your mind on what you have already sent me on the poll, please send another email. As I indicated, it will be a simple majority rule on how this is handled. It appears that there are people with strong feelings for either way of handling this, so I will let you decide what is best.

I will emphasize however that this is an emergency response business. We will dispatch to calls in the most effective and timely manner that is possible. When an apparatus has a suitably equipped and trained crew for the incident it will leave the station as soon as possible. If additional apparatus can be staffed and are required, then they will also respond. Remember, we are here to serve the customer (the person that calls 911).

By the way, the poll currently sits at 9 for changing to page out only when required and 6 have replied to maintain the current system and page out for everything.

Burning Issues

Today seemed to be the day for burning questions, even though it was not a burning day. Still a lot of confusion as to when and where you can burn. So for all you Sooke Fire Members and anyone else caring to know, these are the regulations.

Burning is permitted any day from October 1 to April 30 provided the VENTING INDEX is rated GOOD. On properties less than 2 acres, you can have one pile up to 2 x 2 x 1 m in size. (6'x6'x3' ) for those non metric people. On properties larger than 2 but less than 5 acres, your pile can be 2x2x2 m in size (or two smaller piles) On properties more than 5 acres in size, your pile can be 2 x 3 x 3 m in size (6 x 9 x 9 ft) or roughly the size of a dumptruck load.

For those wanting a burn pile larger than listed above, you must have a minimum of 10 acres of property and you must obtain a Class A burning permit at a fee of $50.00. This allows you to burn for 72 hours provided the Venting Index is GOOD the day you burn and predicted to be GOOD or FAIR the second day. There are no other exceptions. After 72 hours the fire must be extinguished. Your fire must also follow all of the Ministry of Environment Guidelines. This means the fire must be a 100 m from neighbouring homes, and 500 m from a day care, adult care facility, hospital or school in session. A person may obtain up to 4 permits per property per year and they must be a minimum of 15 calendar days apart. The burn pile must also be inspected by the fire department to ensure that all of the guidelines listed are in place.

Penalties for not complying with the burning bylaw are $200.00 for the first offence and $400.00 for repeat offences.

If a fire truck is called to put out the fire, the fee is $600.00 per hour for an engine and $180.00 per hour for the tender or one of the duty vehicles. This is on top of the fine listed above.

So to make this easy, check the Venting Index. If it is GOOD, you can burn. (but not tires, drywall, manure, bodies, cars, boats or GARBAGE) That is also a $200.00 fine.

Chimney Fire Season is Here

The first of the chimney fires occured this weekend. It appears we may be in for a cold winter this year, so this is likely only the beginning of a winter trend. Please remember to take it easy on the roof during this cold period. If you are on the aerial ladder, ensure that you are wearing a fall restraint system. If you are on the roof itself, use a roof ladder. Remember to place tarps whereever possible to prevent muck and debris from tracking through the home and don't forget the fan to keep the smoke from penetrating throughout the home. Follow the basic safety rules and everyone should go home safely.

Recruit Class Update

It appears the recruit class keeps getting bigger and bigger. Last week we welcomed aboard Kirby. She is from the Station 2 area so as you all know, members in this area are hard to come by, so we have taken her on immediately. Also Vince will now be attending calls - you may have already seen him on two or three. He has 17 years experience in fire departments as well as being employeed as a paramedic with BC Ambulance. Take a moment to introduce yourself. Almost all of the recruit class managed to attend training this past Saturday to receive extra time in their SCBA units. This will undoubtably assist them as they progress through their training and will likely be only the first of a few sessions where they can get used to having this strapped to their back. We are still looking for members to assist on Wednesday nights with the recruit training. All you need to do is show up. With such a large class, all the help we can get is much appreciated.

Things are a little crowded in the station right now with all of the new recruits trying to find a spot to hang their gear. I will be constructing additional turn out gear lockers when time permits so please be patient. Cam is almost finished with the painting of the lockers for the ladies change room. This will provide a little additional floor space in the near future.

Sad News

I am sad to report that Delaney passed away on Sunday, October 10 as a result of her illness. A total of $2950.00 was raised along with an additonal $200.00 donation from the Shirley Fire Department. This was passed on to the family on Friday. I am sure that they will put this to good use. Our sympathies to the Dunlop Family

Help for Delany

Have you seen Bob and Pat Hudson with their shiny new hair do's? Some of you may be wondering what this is about. Well it seems, Bob opened his mouth and offered to dye his hair if we could raise $500.00 during the annual firefighter banquet to help Delany. (She is the 19 year old daughter of Metchosin Fire Chief Stephanie Dunlop and she has terminal cancer.) Generous firefighters and guests quickly raised $500.00 for the cause at the dinner. It was then announced that the "Paid Staff" as well as Pat Hudson would do their hair if we hit $1000.00. Thanks to a $500.00 donation by the Firefighters Association, this amount was surpassed by three dollars. Look to see the paid guys with coloured hair coming soon. If you would like to contribute or help in the fundraising effort, a hot dog and calendar sale will take place at Western Foods on Saturday, October 9th from 11:00 to 2:00 pm. Since this was announced, we have already raised an additional $500.00. Way to go.

Sooke Seniors move into Fire Station

At the end of the year, it will appear that the Sooke Firefighters Association will double in size as the Sooke Seniors Group move into the Lounge and kitchen area. Thanks to a very generous donation on the part of the firefighters, the soon to have no home, Sooke Seniors will be allowed to use the lounge during the daytime 3 days a week. In return, the seniors group will have the rooms professionaly cleaned twice a week and allow firefighters to attend their luncheon meetings. (you can also play bingo if you want). This is expected to last for approximately 18 months as the group awaits plans for a new home in the Sooke core area.

News and information update

It appears that this years annual banquet was quite a success. Those in attendance were entertained by a musical trio playing in the lounge upon entering the building. Each lady was presented with a flower. The room was nicely decorated with flowers and gifts galore. Many thanks to Linda Bennett (and Bob) for all the work they did to get this organized. After a fabulous dinner provided by Moms Cafe, members and guests were entertained by Mr. Darrell Thompson, a relatively unkown by extremely humours foreign comic. The man has talent as he regailed the crowd with stories of a certain firefighter dropping his helmet a couple of times, followed by a story on how he was conceived in a VW. Many tears were shed as people could not help but laugh. Awards were then presented by Training Officer Barney, Mayor Evans and Chief Sorensen for all of the courses completed by the firefighters. This was followed by special awards with Darrell receiving Recruit of the Year, Elaine Kouwenberg for Safety Educator of the Year, Ben Patterson for Firefighters of the Year. As is the custom, special guest Bill Stephenson was brought up to present the annual Officer of the Year award. He was actually speechless when he was presented the honour in the form of a full Fire Chiefs Helmet complete with his name, rank and years of service on the front piece. This was followed by a bouquet presentation to Ruby Stephenson. Dessert was scrumptious, prizes were given to all firefighters and then a social evening followed where more draw prizes were made available to those in attendance. Length of Service awards were also presented for 10 years service to firefighters Bob Bennett, Glenn Harrison and Captain Shane Burket. For fifteen years service, Firefighter Tom Warran and Assistant Chief Matt Barney received special awards. Thanks to all those that attended. It was indeed a very special evening.