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NEWS 
 

Thanksgiving morning fire destroys Kelowna home

The cause of an early Monday morning residential fire in Kelowna, B.C.’s Upper Mission is under investigation.


Aging Pitt Meadows fire truck replaced to enhance safety

The City of Pitt Meadows, B.C., has acquired a new apparatus for the Fire Department’s fleet, replacing one of its aging trucks, which has seen rapidly increasing repair costs and is nearing the end of its service life.


Iroquois neighbourhood evacuated after ‘major gas leak’

Firefighters have responded to a “hazardous materials spill” at an Iroquois, Ont.’s business, the Municipality of South Dundas said Thursday afternoon.


Cutting torch sparked Queens County barn fire: fire marshal’s office

The P.E.I. provincial Fire Marshals Office has determined the cause of the fire which destroyed a barn in Queens County earlier this week. The fire marshals’ investigation determined sparks of a cutting torch, which was used inside the building, ignited nearby combustible materials, setting it on fire.
 
 
SPONSORED SPOTLIGHT 
 
Noratek

CityReporter for Fire Prevention Inspections

CityReporter was developed with input from fire chiefs in towns and cities across North America. It contains a library of fire inspection checklists based on the national fire code. This allows fire prevention officers to get started with inspections immediately after installing your properties in the software.

"My days are so much more productive. I don’t know about the cost savings of using less paper, but it makes my life a heck of a lot easier. You can’t put a price tag on that. I wish they had technology like this years ago.” Jim McBride, Director of Protective Services

» Learn more
 
CURRENT ISSUE 
 
F1

Cover story: Reducing falls

Imagine you are an 84-year-old man living with your wife of 63 years in a building that provides you with meals and house cleaning. One day, you fall on your way to the easy chair and can’t get up; this is the first time and you call the fire department for help. The firefighters are professional and kind, and carefully lift you back into your chair. The firefighters are primary care paramedics, so they also take your vitals to ensure there are no signs of other emerging medical conditions. When they leave you think, this is such a wonderful service. A week later you fall in a different location and the story repeats itself. During the next year, firefighters come back 19 times to lift you after a fall. Although everyone is kind and helpful, this seems a bit excessive, even to you. By Dori Krahn and Roslyn M. Compton » Read more...
 
F2

Well-Being: Priority testing for your physical exam

At the Halton Hills Fire Department, where I have been the chief medical officer for the firefighters for 18 years, we have made firefighter physical exams and baseline testing a key component of the monitoring and maintenance of our firefighters. New recruits joining the department go through a comprehensive physical exam that includes extensive blood work. Veteran firefighters will visit me every two years to run new blood work data to compare old values with new blood work values. This is an ongoing process for our firefighters. By Elias Markou » Read more...
 
 
SPONSORED SPOTLIGHT 
 
Bookstore

Coordinating Ventilation: Supporting Extinguishment and Survivability

Ventilation can make or break the outcome of a fire. Ensuring its success requires a knowledge of how it works and what precautions must be taken.

Coordinating Ventilation: Supporting Extinguishment and Survivability examines ventilation and its relationship to fire behavior to identify how it affects the fire, operations, and—most importantly—victim survivability. Ventilation can be universally applied, from the smallest rural community to the largest metropolitan city.

Now available at Firehall Bookstore. >> Order your copy today
 
FROM THE ARCHIVES 
 

Gear Guide: Long calls and long hauls

Picture this: it’s almost noon, your stomach is starting to get a bit growly and you wish you had grabbed something on the way out of the house to a call, which came in at just past 3 a.m. Then, suddenly, the rehab unit arrives on-scene to deliver some lunch. It’s pizza. Problem is, you’re lactose intolerant and didn’t bring your medication. Now, you’re hungry and grumpy and the high noon sun is really starting to bother your eyes. If only you had your sunglasses. Sound familiar? By Kirk Hughes » Learn more

Mental health mayday

One of the fire service mantras is “leave no one behind.” The objective is if a fellow firefighter is in trouble and calls a mayday to be rescued, we recognize the danger, provide the resources, and support actions that save that individual. However, despite reviewing statistics from various sources that appear to indicate firefighter suicides are higher annually than line of duty deaths, mayday calls aren’t used when addressing our mental health. It’s time we expand the scope of a mayday call to include when our mental health is in jeopardy. By Patrick J. Kenny » Learn more
 
FIRE FIGHTING IN CANADA: THE PODCAST 
 

The future and the fire service with Bill Boyes and Arnold Lazare, 2021 chiefs of the year

This month’s edition of Fire Fighting in Canada: The Podcast features the winners of this year’s Fire Chief of the Year awards presented by the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs and Fire Underwriter’s Survey. The two winners, Career Fire Chief Bill Boyes and Volunteer Fire Chief Arnold Lazare, joined host Fire Chief Tom DeSorcy for a conversation about the future of firefighting. DeSorcy captured their reactions to being the recipients of the Career and Volunteer Fire Chief of the Year awards, and Boyes and Lazare talk about the challenges of the pandemic from the perspectives of a volunteer station and an urban one. » Listen now
 
Events 
 

FSWO 2021 Virtual Training Symposium

October 31 – November 19 Location: Virtual » Learn more