Haz Mat Calls Keep Crews Hopping

It seems that Haz Mat calls are the flavour of the month. Not only was there the response to the house full of gas as mentioned in the last post, but Sooke Firefighters responded as part of the CRD Regional Haz Mat Team to a major chlorine leak on Dallas Road. For reasons still being investigated, it appears that bleach accidentaly mixed with muriatic acid (used as components to make chlorine for the pool located in this building)and caused a chemical reaction. This required the response of the main CRD Haz Mat unit from Central Saanich as well as Technicians from several local fire departments and 2 engine companies from Victoria (Victoria FD is currently not part of the Haz Mat Team) Three members from Sooke took turns as the entry team as well as the back up team on this event that lasted for approximately 10 hours. As they say, many times haz mat calls are "Hurry up and then wait" Fortunately there were no injuries reported.

A few days later, Sooke Firefighters responded to a reported propane leak on Austins Place. Crews arrived to find a house with slightly lowered oxygen levels and an odour of propane throughout the house. The tank on the property had been filled earlier in the day and it appeared that it may have been overfilled. This would result in the pressure relief valve opening as the sun warmed up the tank. As there was a vent for the air handling system located right above the propane tank, it would have sucked in the fumes causing the odour in the house. Crews used PPV and cleared the house quickly, allowing the owners safely back into their home.

A possible haz mat call was received yesterday, but fortunately only turned into a complicated vehicle exrtication exercise. It appears that a septic pumping truck was working at a home on Meota Drive when for unknown reasons (at this time) the truck began rolling away. As the home was located at the top of a steep driveway, the truck took off in reverse making it almost to the road but ending up nearly on its side in the ditch. A large wrecker was already on scene and the truck had been pumped out before the fire department was requested to attend. A check of the vehicle determined that no leaks from the fuel tank or septic tank were found. As a safety precaution, the culvert across the street was boomed to catch any run off. As the wrecker lifted the truck, crews used the air shores to assist in lifting and stabilizing the vehicle. Once it was back on the road, the truck was placed onto a flatdeck for transport back to Victoria. The vehicle could not be towed due to the broken axle it suffered in the crash.