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.

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.

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.

Better Late than Never?

Yes, it has been a while since I updated this so here goes:
First I would like to thank everyone for all the work that has been done lately. To the Recruit Class - a special thanks for an awesome dinner. Very impressive. It appears that all the recruits (except the one with the number 7) were successful and will be passing probation. Congratulations. I would also like to thank the day staff for all the work they have done lately in fire hall and truck maintance. The building has never looked so good. I hear station 2 is next.
Work on the sign for Station 2 is nearing completion. The crane has been sandblasted and will be painted next week. It will then be installed with the log work. This should look impressive I hope and will be one of the features when the Commuinities in Bloom contest comes to town at the end of July.
A great effort by the firefighters that attended the big structure fire on Mt. Matheson last weekend as mutual aid to East Sooke. The building was a total loss despite the best efforts of many. Fortunately nobody was hurt. Sooke crews were able to keep the wildland fire that started as result of falling embers from spreading across the mountain - yes folks, it is getting dry out there. In case you hadn't noticed the burning index is now rated HIGH.
We are in preparation for Canada Day on July 1. It would be great to have a good turnout of firefighters at this event. The recruit class has promised to put in a raft in the annual race to defend last years group effort. Lets all show up and cheer them on. We will also be doing a recruiting drive and fire extinguisher training for the public. That evening will be our annual fireworks display.
August 8th is the Subaru Triathlon through Sooke and Otter Point. Volunteers are needed to help at this event. Please let me know if you can help.
For those of you that have been stuck in one of the great traffic jams in Sooke this past month we can now report that Hydro has completed the majority of their work along the roadway. Work is now taking place on the bridge. Despite the complaints of many citizens, there is little the District of Sooke can do as this is a Provincial Highway and we do not have control over this road. Now that the underground hydro work is done, the repaving will soon begin in our area. Some work has already started near Luxton and the 17 Mile House. Most of the paving work will take place at night so traffic shouldn't be to bad (I hope) We are investigating ways to assist firefighters in getting from their homes to the fire halls in the event of emergencies during this construction period.

Latest Update

I have a bunch of things to report so here goes: First off, for those taking the Fire Officer 1 training course, the new text books are in. Contact me or the Training Officer to get your new edition. This should certainly make finding the homework a lot easier.

Congratulations again to Cam as he starts his first day of work with the District of Sooke. He certainly is off on the right foot as he brought in homemade cookies - Hint, Hint.

July 5th will begin the 4 day on / 4 day off rotation. This will bring about a variety of changes to the department. A discussion on switching the duty officer and FR duty will need to be conducted to determine which direction you would like to go with this. Also, with holidays coming up for the staff, there are several days available for the volunteer firefighters to come in and work a shift. I will be posting a list shortly of the days currently available. This will be updated regularly as new dates are determined.

A new command vehicle has been purchased. We were fortunate in acquiring a slightly used hybrid pickup truck from the Olympics. With only 6,000 km on the odometer it is almost new. The price was really great too as we got it for $19,000.00 off the retail price. When this new vehicle is added to the fleet we will be moving some of the trucks around. The new truck will become Car 1 (unit 211) The current Car 1 (unit 209) will become Squad 1 and be left at Station 1 for use of the day staff and as the First Responder unit for the duty crew at Station 1. (208) Battalion 1 will stay as is and be used by the duty officer (by the way - the water tank has been installed for the summer) Finally, what is currently Squad 1 (unit 210) will be reassigned to Station 2 as Squad 2. This unit will be available for daytime responders from station 2 that are not qualified to drive the heavy apparatus and will also be available to any Station 2 first responder duty crew or for FR calls in general. Not sure how this will work, but we will give it a try for a month or two and then re-evaluate. Oh and on a side note, as the new command vehicle was the last unit is stock, there was new choice in colour. It is a silver / grey colour. We will be placing decals and striping on the truck to show it is a fire department vehicle. Here is where you get to help make a decision - should we just look at some great graphics and striping to make it look like a fire department vehicle or should we have it repainted red to match the fleet. Let me know your opinion.

Several events coming up quickly. The Touch the Truck event will have Engine 11 (204) off to Western Speedway this weekend. Also the Ride for Life will take place on Sunday at EMCS. The Western Foods Anniversary sale last weekend netted over $350.00 for a charity of our choice. Help is still needed for Canada Day. We will be having a recruiting drive as well as offering fire extinguisher training to the public. If you can help, please sign up on the sheet.

Garry and John are looking for new members for the Auto Extrication Team. No experience is neccessary. They are not planning to compete right now, just in getting training. It is only one night a month so if this type of thing intererts you, I encourage you to contact either of them for information.

The Office of the Fire Commissioner has asked BC Fire Departments to submit a list of apparatus and qualified FD personnel that would be interested in fighting fires in the event of major fire situations as some of us went through in Kelowna and other parts of the Province in past years. If you would like to be placed on the eligibility list, please let me know.

I will be away this coming week (leaving Saturday) as I will be attending the BC Fire Chiefs Conference. If you have any questions in my absence, please contact DC McLeod.

News and Information Update

Its been a while since I have had an opportunity to post anything, so here is the latest news.

Cam will be starting his first day on the new job beginning next week. We will spend approximately one month on orientation with him and then the 4 day on / 4 day off shift pattern starts right after Canada Day Holiday - Monday July 5th. There is lots of opportunties for volunteer firefighters to participate in daily activities and additional training time. All you have to do is let us know what you want. Reminder also that there is an opportunity for qualified volunteer firefighters to fill in as holiday and relief staff on weekends and stat days. A sign up sheet will be put up in the training room.

Reminder that Evan Parliament (CAO) will be speaking to the Association this Thursday night.

Call activity seems to have increased as of late. Two structure fires were reported, each on a Friday during the day. The first occured on Friday, May 14th. There were a few tense moments as only the Chief and Deputy were available to respond. We were joined some minutes later by Chris how was finishing up one of his jobs from his past life. Fortunately the fire was contained. A towel thrown over a hologen bathroom light fixture ignited and caused damage to the wall, light fixture and counter top. Some light smoke damage was also evident. About $500.00 in damage. The second fire, the following Friday occured in the morning and was the result of a faulty toaster catching on fire. Luckily the home owner had a large fire extinguisher and was able to knock down the rapidly spreading fire. Fire damage was contained to the kitchen, however significant smoke and dry chemical powder was found throughout the house. Damage will probably be in the $10,000.00+ range for this one. This being the Friday before the long weekend resulted in more firefighters attending with a total compliment of 9 on scene.

An early morning roll over MVI occured on Gillespie Road. The female occupant rolled her pick up truck over and down an embankment. She managed to free herself and crawl up to the roadside where bystanders helped her until emergency services arrived. Injuries were not life threatening.

If you haven't been by the Prestige Hotel lately, the fourth floor is now under construction. This building keeps getting bigger. Site work has now begun at the Evergreen Mall in prepartion for the construction of the new Shoppers Drug Mart. Work on Sooke Road between Charters and Phillips will continue for the next month as BC Hydro installs new underground wiring. As soon as this is completed, the repaving of Sooke Road will begin. Work on the Mariners Landing site is expected to get underway within the next month. This will include a reconfiguration of the Church Road intersection.

The Annual Firefighter Appreciation Banquet has been tentatively set for Saturday, October 16th this year. More information will follow.

Sooke has been selected to host the British Columbia Fire Prevention Officer Convention in May of 2012. This is great news for the community, the convention centre and hotel. The fire department will only have to play a small part in this event as most of the work is done by a committee consisting of FPOABC members.

A large trailer has been purchased to store and transport the District of Sooke display that was featured at the Ozone, the Rotary Auction and at the Vancouver Outdoor Adventure Show. The trailer it is now in has to go back to the generous owner that lent it to us. It will be in the fire hall for a few days until the load can be transfered and then moved to a suitable storage site.

Some work is planned for both fire stations as part of an energy refit and to meet the "green" requirements set out by the Province. Included will be new low energy light fixtures throughout both buildings and the change from propane to natural gas in Station 1. A new washing machine is now installed in each fire hall for turn out gear cleaning. Do NOT use these for other cleaning chores. Next up will be the installation of emergency power at Station 2. There is also a rush to try to get the Sooke Station 2 sign completed for the upcoming Communities in Bloom judging. Anyone interested in helping on this project - please contact me.

The canopy has been removed from 208 and the water tank and pump installed in anticipation of summer (hard to believe with the current weather). If you are unfamiliar with its operation, please check with one of the staff for a quick lesson or refresher.

Well that's it for now.