HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2016-09-22, Page 9THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016. PAGE 9.
Mexican firefighter project yields millions in results
Yielding results
An idea from the mind of Doug Scrimgeour, right, has yielded big results in just over a year
since implementation. He aimed to collect firefighter equipment destined for the landfill and
repurpose it to Mexico where many departments are struggling to buy equipment or supplies.
The program has since blossomed to include paramedic and medical supplies and even
children's clothing and firefighter training opportunities. Fire Department of North Huron Chief
David Sparling, left, has been instrumental in the program's growth, bringing in plenty of
equipment and supplies through the Emergency Services Training Centre. (Shawn Lougntin photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
In just under a year and a half, the
brainchild of Blyth's Doug
Scrimgeour has resulted in an
estimated over $15 million worth of
used fire and emergency medical
services (EMS) equipment being
repurposed to Mexico.
In May, 2015, The Citizen first
reported on Scrimgeour's initiative,
which aimed to send firefighter
equipment, uniforms and gear to a
number of in -need Mexican
departments. Scrimgeour and his
wife Diane Radford spend half of
the year in Mexico and have seen
first hand the need for help in some
of the country's communities, which
is why he created the Lakeside
Assistance Group (LAG).
When The Citizen reported on the
story in early 2015, Scrimgeour had
already been hard at work for 18
months forging relationships and
networking to make his dream a
reality.
While the program has flourished
both locally and internationally in
terms of donations, it has also cast a
wider net in terms of what is being
repurposed to Mexico. Donations
have expanded to include all kinds
of medical equipment such as
wheelchairs, crutches and medical
supplies. Fire equipment has also
expanded to include almost anything
that could be found at a Canadian
fire department, including hoses,
oxygen tanks and helmets, as well as
sets of the Jaws of Life for motor
vehicle collision scenes.
One of the newer partnerships,
facilitated through Fire Department
of North Huron Chief David
Sparling, who is also the Director of
at Blyth's Emergency Services
Training Centre (ESTC), has
resulted in dozens of Mexican
departments gaining access to online
firefighter training programs,
available in Spanish, for free.
Sparling has also helped to
streamline the donation process and
provide access to thousands of
potential donors through
departments sending students to the
centre for training.
"We have over 3,000 people on
our contact list," Sparling said. So
when the ESTC sends out e-mail
blasts, whether it be about new
courses being offered or other
happenings at the centre, they'll
occasionally add information about
the program, saying that if spare
gear or equipment is nearing its
Canadian expiration, it could find
new life in Mexico by being donated
at the ESTC.
Those connections have served to
What a collection
The Lakeside Assistance Group has worked to bring millions of dollars worth of equipment
and supplies to Mexico and distribute it to where it needs to go within the region. Here,
volunteers are helping to unload one of the shipping containers, which contained a large
number of firefighter bunker suits, as well as equipment and supplies. (Lakeside Assistance Group photo)
greatly assist the program, which has
grown exponentially in the last year.
And while the ESTC has connected
numerous departments to the
program, Scrimgeour has also
expanded his reach, both locally and
throughout North American,
engaging people and organizations
wishing to help.
One of the biggest potential
partnerships on the table for the
organization is with the Texas State
Association of Firefighters
(TSAFF). The TSAFF board of
directors recently voted in favour of
continuing discussions about a
potential partnership with the LAG.
"Erin Powers, who proposed this
charitable initiative to the TSAFF,
has agreed to donate event planning,
public relations and photography
services to this project. He has also
agreed to help co-ordinate efforts in
Ajijic, where his late father's wife
and family and many of their friends
reside," said TSAFF President John
Riddle, in a letter written to LAG
President John Kelly on Sept. 2.
"TSAFF represents more than
14,065 professional, [International
Association of
Firefighters] -
affiliated
firefighters in 165
communities in
Texas. Outreach to
our members and
the municipalities
in which they
serve will begin
this week. Erin has
begun contacting
fire equipment
manufacturers,
U.S. airlines and
others from which
donations of
services and goods
will be solicited."
Riddle added
that TSAFF has a
long history of
charitable action
in Mexico and
found the LAG
initiative to be one
fitting with the
group's goals.
" T S AFF
members' commitment to giving
back, our proximity to Mexico and
your established history in this area
make this project a promising one,"
he said.
Scrimgeour is also hoping to
create partnerships with local police
departments, saying there have been
discussions with the OPP, as well as
the Toronto, Peel and York
departments, but that nothing has yet
been finalized.
Locally, Scrimgeour says that
partnerships with the North Huron,
Huron East and Goderich fire
departments have blossomed in the
year since the project was first
announced. Sparling says that from a
firefighter's perspective, the
program just makes sense.
Sparling says that he and other
Huron County firefighters must
dispose of plenty of bunker gear and
equipment due to expiration dates,
whether they still appear functional
and safe or not.
While he's aware of the reasoning
behind expiration dates for
firefighter gear, Sparling says that
the "firefighter in you" looks at the
gear and knows it still has life in it
and could be used in a community
that can't afford it.
He says the program that has been
orchestrated by Scrimgeour has
had a great impact and he sees it
every time pictures are sent
from Mexico that show a local
firefighter or paramedic wearing
clothes or using equipment that
was once in use in Huron County.
In May, 2015, Scrimgeour was
preparing the project's first shipping
container, readying it for its journey
to Mexico. Since then, two more full
containers have been sent to Mexico
and there is nearly enough material
for a fourth.
The value of the equipment that
has already been sent to Mexico,
Scrimgeour says, is estimated to be
valued at between $15 and $16
million and with another container
to be sent and additional partners
coming aboard every day, the project
continues to grow by leaps and
bounds.
Just under 80 fire departments in
Mexico have received at least some
equipment as part of the initiative,
some of which have been fully
outfitted as a result of the initiative.
That is compared to 16 departments
that received donations from the
organization's first effort.
In addition to physical equipment
being received by departments, now
with online training available,
firefighting education in these
regions of Mexico has come a long
To the brim
To date, three full shipping containers, like
the one above, stuffed with bunker suits
and hoses, among other supplies, have
been shipped from Huron to Mexico to aid
firefighters. (Lakeside Assistance Group photo)
way in the last year, Scrimgeour
says. The impact of that change, he
said, is hard to measure, but it's
certainly positive for the
communities.
In addition, the introduction of
ongoing meetings and mutual aid
agreements throughout the region
has gone over well and the concept
is continuing to expand throughout
the country.
Scrimgeour, who was involved
with the Blyth and Area Fire Board
years ago, wanted to bring a similar
concept to the Mexican departments,
which had little or no
communication with one another
just a handful of years ago. Now, the
level of co-operation and
communication between
departments is high.
Without Sparling, former head of
Huron County EMS David Lew and
Jean Aitchison connecting the
program to much-needed medical
supplies, Scrimgeour says he doesn't
think the program would have grown
as much as it has in just over a year.
Scrimgeour, who is this year
celebrating his 50th anniversary
since he first joined the Blyth Fire
Department, says he never thought
the program would grow to be this
big and help this many people. He
says it's the most rewarding thing
he's ever done in his life.
To get involved or to donate used
medical or fire equipment, contact
Scrimgeour at 519-523-9343, or
contact Sparling at the ESTC.