Well it looks like summer might be over for a while (lets hope there is a part 2) and with that comes the drivers who have difficulty negotiating slick pavement. The first one came in today, just before the supper hour when a late model Mustang went off the road near the Glinz Lake Road intersection, hit a reflective sign post, took out a hydro pole guy wire and then finished up by hitting an old stump. The driver suffered no injuries and the car took the crash surpisingly well, although the front wheel may argue that point somewhat. I am sure this is just the first of more to come as the rainy season is upon us.
The Chilli Challenge and Heroes in the Sky is only a week away. Hopefully you will all be there to support this worthy cause. Even if you can only make it for an hour or two, it would be great to see everyone there. The calendars should be here anytime (maybe even tomorrow). We still need people to hang from the ladder truck. Find a friend, an enemy or even yourself. It's only for an hour and the feeling does come back in your legs.
Lots of new recruits this year. We have interviewed many applicants and if my math is correct, I believe we have accepted 17 so far to begin recruit training. There are still another 3 or 4 to interview, but they are all at sea at the moment, so these will be done upon their return. Going to be one very big class, so anyone that can assist on Wednesday nights will really be appreciated. Three of the new recruits have previous firefighting experience, so they will be given pagers and keys as soon as they have completed the orientation portion of the training. We will post all the names and platoon assignments for you to see. Let's welcome them all to Sooke Fire Rescue Service.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Congratulations
Congratulations are in order as Murray Lambert has been promoted to the rank of Captain. As such, a review of A and B Platoons rosters will be completed. There may be some shuffling of bodies to even out the qualificiations of those members assigned to these platoons. Stay tuned.
News of the day
Another new map has been posted on the wall in the alarm. This is the most up to date and complete map covering the District of Sooke as well as adjoining areas. Many thanks to Leah and Brian from our GIS Division for all their work on this. A similar map will be placed at Station 2 in the near future. You may have also noted all the paper attached to the window in the alarm room. These are floor and / or site plans of all the current building or development projects underway within the municipality. This will be updated on a regular basis, so it is in your best interest to familiarize yourselves with the material on display.
Recruiting is going extremely well. To date, we have had 14 candidates do their agility test and complete the interview process. Another five are scheduled for tonight. Did you know that if we want to add additional volunteer firefighters to our roster (over and above what we already are budgeted for) it costs approximately $5000.00 per volunteer for the first year of service and then about $2,000.00 per year thereafter. To put this in perspective, if we want to go from the current 50 members (45 in suppression) to 60 members, it will cost an additional $50,000.00 the first full year they join and then $10,000.00 per each year after.
A reminder to all the officers that we will be starting officer meetings again, the first one of the fall will be on September 7th. We will then meet every second month, on the second Tuesday of each month. Fire Office 1 Training also starts up again, with the first session of the new season on September 28th and then the fourth Tuesday of each month. Pub Ed Committee will also start meeting again on the fourth Wednesday evening of each month.
Recruiting is going extremely well. To date, we have had 14 candidates do their agility test and complete the interview process. Another five are scheduled for tonight. Did you know that if we want to add additional volunteer firefighters to our roster (over and above what we already are budgeted for) it costs approximately $5000.00 per volunteer for the first year of service and then about $2,000.00 per year thereafter. To put this in perspective, if we want to go from the current 50 members (45 in suppression) to 60 members, it will cost an additional $50,000.00 the first full year they join and then $10,000.00 per each year after.
A reminder to all the officers that we will be starting officer meetings again, the first one of the fall will be on September 7th. We will then meet every second month, on the second Tuesday of each month. Fire Office 1 Training also starts up again, with the first session of the new season on September 28th and then the fourth Tuesday of each month. Pub Ed Committee will also start meeting again on the fourth Wednesday evening of each month.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Station 2 Update
Well, after years of discussion, time spent acquiring parts, and trying to find all the pieces to make it come together, the new Station 2 sign is finally done. And if I do say so myself, it looks awesome. Thanks are due to many people, including firefighters and DOS staff, but in particular, I must thank Chris for the great landscaping job and the donation of the logs. Also, thanks to West Coast Collision for painting the crane parts and VI Propane for lifting up the crane. If you haven't been to see it yet, it is worth a trip next time you are in that area.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Fresh Start - New Look
Thought I would try a new look to the blog since I am starting over. What do you think?
Lots of big things happening in little old Sooke. There have been several meetings and things are looking very favourably to launch a community radio station in Sooke. We are hoping for an official launch at the upcoming Chilli Challenge where the name and a contest for a logo will be unveiled............stay tuned.
Tomorrow DOS staff will be meeting with representatives of Tofino Air. This company is investigating the possibility of providing direct seaplane flights to Sooke. This could be huge news for the tourism industry.
Work has started on a new salmon hatchery and interpretive centre. This will be constructed on Charters Creek and be accessible from Sooke River Road and the Galloping Goose. This could be a huge benefit to Sooke as not only a tourist site, but as a learning centre for area schools.
An RFP (request for proposal) has gone out for interested parties to bid on completing a Community Wildfire Assessment Plan. This was a joint proposal between Sooke and the CRD. This plan will outline all of the hazards and possible mitigation plans for the entire Sooke to Port Renfrew area as well as Willis Point and the Malahat. A $100,000.00 grant was obtained for this project.
Four large hose reels have been acquired at a very reasonable price. You may wonder what these are to be used for. No, it is not for fire hose, rather these will be located at area marinas and possibly on a truck body to contain the absorbent and containment booms that we have stored at various sites in the community. This will allow quick deployment of these booms in the event of a spill of fuel or other hazardous materials into the Sooke Harbour or Basin.
Lots of big things happening in little old Sooke. There have been several meetings and things are looking very favourably to launch a community radio station in Sooke. We are hoping for an official launch at the upcoming Chilli Challenge where the name and a contest for a logo will be unveiled............stay tuned.
Tomorrow DOS staff will be meeting with representatives of Tofino Air. This company is investigating the possibility of providing direct seaplane flights to Sooke. This could be huge news for the tourism industry.
Work has started on a new salmon hatchery and interpretive centre. This will be constructed on Charters Creek and be accessible from Sooke River Road and the Galloping Goose. This could be a huge benefit to Sooke as not only a tourist site, but as a learning centre for area schools.
An RFP (request for proposal) has gone out for interested parties to bid on completing a Community Wildfire Assessment Plan. This was a joint proposal between Sooke and the CRD. This plan will outline all of the hazards and possible mitigation plans for the entire Sooke to Port Renfrew area as well as Willis Point and the Malahat. A $100,000.00 grant was obtained for this project.
Four large hose reels have been acquired at a very reasonable price. You may wonder what these are to be used for. No, it is not for fire hose, rather these will be located at area marinas and possibly on a truck body to contain the absorbent and containment booms that we have stored at various sites in the community. This will allow quick deployment of these booms in the event of a spill of fuel or other hazardous materials into the Sooke Harbour or Basin.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
The Fire Within Calendars
The Fire Within Calendars have gone to press and should arrive here shortly. Now is the time to start preselling these to friends and family. $20.00 each buys you a great calendar and will support many of the fire departments causes.
Back in the Saddle
To all of you that have wondered what happened with the blog, here goes another attempt. I will try to keep this up to date at least weekly so give me a couple of weeks to catch up.
First off, the recruiting drive has gone very well. We now have close to 20 applicants. There will be an open house this Tuesday (24th) for all the potential candidates to bring their families in for an orientation session. Anyone wishing to be here to show them around would be welcome. Uniforms please. The first recruit class session will begin on September 15th
Work has started on the Mariners Landing Development. As you are all aware, we will be hostihng approximately 100 students for a Fire Investigation Level 2 course using the old motel for the training. This will all take place the week of Sept 21 to 24. The classroom sessions will be held in Council Chambers and the live burn session will take place on the 22nd at the motel. On the Sunday and Monday (19th and 20th) we will be conducting several preburns on the site to prepare it for the students. Anyone able to assist with fire attack on either of these days would be appreciated. We also need a crew on the Wednesday to put out the fires. The Lounge will be open each evening from Monday to Thursday to entertain the students and instructors. On Thursday, the Association will be hosting a bbq dinner for all of the participants. Please make an effort to be here as much as possible. On Wednesday night, the 17 Mile House has given us a super deal on night zip lining. This open to all Sooke Firefighters too and at a cost of only $55.00 per person. There will be a sign up list for this.
Don't forget the Annual Firefighter Appreciation Banquet on October 2nd. Make sure you RSVP or you will not get any dinner.
In case you haven't noticed or heard yet, Squad 2 is now parked in Sunriver. This is a result of all the road construction and the difficulty members living in this area have in getting to the fire station with all the road construction. If these proves successful, we may keep the vehicle here. Sunriver crews are reminded that they must call in to the duty officer before proceeding to the incident. They must also be responsible for the weekly truck checks and ensuring the unit is refuelled.
First off, the recruiting drive has gone very well. We now have close to 20 applicants. There will be an open house this Tuesday (24th) for all the potential candidates to bring their families in for an orientation session. Anyone wishing to be here to show them around would be welcome. Uniforms please. The first recruit class session will begin on September 15th
Work has started on the Mariners Landing Development. As you are all aware, we will be hostihng approximately 100 students for a Fire Investigation Level 2 course using the old motel for the training. This will all take place the week of Sept 21 to 24. The classroom sessions will be held in Council Chambers and the live burn session will take place on the 22nd at the motel. On the Sunday and Monday (19th and 20th) we will be conducting several preburns on the site to prepare it for the students. Anyone able to assist with fire attack on either of these days would be appreciated. We also need a crew on the Wednesday to put out the fires. The Lounge will be open each evening from Monday to Thursday to entertain the students and instructors. On Thursday, the Association will be hosting a bbq dinner for all of the participants. Please make an effort to be here as much as possible. On Wednesday night, the 17 Mile House has given us a super deal on night zip lining. This open to all Sooke Firefighters too and at a cost of only $55.00 per person. There will be a sign up list for this.
Don't forget the Annual Firefighter Appreciation Banquet on October 2nd. Make sure you RSVP or you will not get any dinner.
In case you haven't noticed or heard yet, Squad 2 is now parked in Sunriver. This is a result of all the road construction and the difficulty members living in this area have in getting to the fire station with all the road construction. If these proves successful, we may keep the vehicle here. Sunriver crews are reminded that they must call in to the duty officer before proceeding to the incident. They must also be responsible for the weekly truck checks and ensuring the unit is refuelled.
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