HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2017-03-30, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 2017.
Sparling, Marshall make final M -T fire presentation
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Two emergency officials from
North Huron and Morris-Turnberry
made final reports to Morris-
Turnberry Council during its March
21 meeting.
Outgoing Fire Department of
North Huron and North Huron
Director of Emergency Services
David Sparling and former Morris-
Turnberry Fire Prevention Officer
James Marshall made a final year-
end report to Morris-Turnberry that
included some high points, some
challenges and suggestions for the
coming years.
Sparling explained that fire
protection services provided by
North Huron ended in 2016 well
over the estimated number of calls
that he used as a basis for the budget.
"The budget is set at 130 calls, and
in 2016 we had 171," he said. "Most
of them were working fires, which
we define as fires that require hoses
to be taken off the truck"
Sparling said he wanted to remind
council members to thank their local
A monumental game
Local OPP officers, known on the ice as the Huron OPP Ice Hogs, took on the Smoke Eaters,
also known as members of the Huron East Fire Department, on Saturday as a means of
raising funds for Victim Services of Huron County. The game attracted plenty of spectators to
the Seaforth and District Community Centre. Julie Sawchuk from the Blyth area was on hand
to drop the puck. From left: Mark Gransden of the OPP, Oliver Sawchuk, Julie Sawchuk, OPP
Detachment Commander Jason Younan, Huron East Fire Chief Marty Bedard and Ken
Higgins from the Brussels station of the fire department. (Denny Scott photo)
employers for allowing the
firefighters to be a part of the
department.
"Over 70 per cent of the fire calls
in 2016 happened during the work
day," he said. "Without the support
of employers, our firefighters
wouldn't be here"
Sparling said that Morris-
Turnberry's automatic aid
agreements with surrounding
municipalities has led to a safer
reality for its ratepayers as well as an
easier job for himself and his
incoming replacement, Ryan
Ladner.
As for the growth in calls, Sparling
said that alarm calls are going up
including false alarm situations that
result in higher numbers than
normal.
"The majority of calls can be
broken down into three categories,"
he explained. "We have alarm or
system false activations, medical
calls or working fire calls.
The working fire calls are the most
expensive and longest calls, Sparling
said, saying that the Turnberry ward
had seen an increase in these calls as
a result of stolen vehicles being
abandoned and set ablaze.
"There was one intersection in
Turnberry where three vehicle fires
were dealt with," he said.
In conclusion, Sparling said he
had found Morris-Turnberry and its
council very reasonable to work
with. He said he is looking forward
to seeing his replacement do a great
job with Morris-Turnberry.
The reports from Marshall and
Sparling were accepted by council.
911 BLADE PROJECT
As for the future, Sparling
suggested that Morris-Turnberry
look to a project that North Huron
had undertaken at his suggestion. He
explained that, with so many farms
without homes or buildings on them,
911 numbers were often unknown
and that can cause a significant
challenge for emergency responders.
"When people call 911, they are
talking to a dispatcher [from London
or Owen Sound]," he said. "If a
person doesn't know their 911
number or if there is no 911 blade, it
can be difficult for emergency
services to respond."
The blades are the signs that have
a property's 911 number printed on
it which are affixed near driveways.
Sparling shared North Huron
resident Luke Schilder's story.
Schilder spoke to North Huron
Township Council after his son had
been seriously injured while
farming. The incident happened at
the back of a farm and Schilder
wasn't immediately able to give an
address.
As a result of the situation,
Sparling, along with a co-op student,
got the GPS coordinates for farm
driveways that weren't identified by
a 911 blade and tried to get them all
marked.
"We drove around during bean
harvest to see which driveways
needed identification," he said. "The
county provides the 911 blades and
we were able to mark 400
driveways."
Sparling said he was a big fan of
the project because it benefitted not
only emergency services and
dispatchers but ratepayers as well.
"I encourage you to look at the
possibility of a similar program for
your farm and rural addresses," he
said. "We even had a couple farmers
Continued on page 11
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