The Citizen, 2015-09-03, Page 14PAGE 14. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2015.
Lanterns known to cause
serious fires says Sparling
Alberta trumps Ontario, McGavin off to Worlds
Keeping it straight
Brandon McGavin, a Walton native now living in Alberta, took home the top prize at last week’s
Canadian championships. McGavin can be seen in the distance putting the finishing touches
on his winning performance, while his father, Brian, can be seen in the foreground,
representing Ontario at the match, which was held at Wolfe Island. Brian would finish third in
the match. (Photo submitted)
Fire hazard
Fire Department of North Huron Chief David Sparling spoke
to North Huron Council at its meeting last week about the
dangers of Chinese lanterns within the municipality, where
they have been deemed to be illegal. He is seen here at the
meeting, holding one of them. (Denny Scott photo)
Continued from page 1
walk around Blyth, he found five of
them on the ground while seeing
dozens more in the sky. The
lanterns are illegal in North Huron.
Sparling found that the lanterns
were being legally lit in Central
Huron on the other side of County
Road 25, where there is no law
against them, but were then flying
into Blyth.
Sparling made a presentation to
council highlighting incidents
where the lanterns had caused
serious fires. Fields, homes and
factories were shown being either
set ablaze or evacuated due to the
lanterns including one factory in
the United Kingdom that saw $12
million in damages. That blaze’s
origin was caught on close-circuit
television and showed a lantern
floating into the industrial lot and
causing the fire.
“Several lanterns were seen
over Dinsley and Mill Street in
Blyth,” Sparling said, showing
pictures of the lanterns over the
Blyth United Church. “Five landed
in town. One of the problems we
face is that in our bylaw and
Bluewater’s bylaw, the lanterns
aren’t allowed.”
Sparling stated that lanterns can
be lit in other municipalities, fly
over municipal boundaries, and he
can’t do anything about it.
Sparling said that his concern
around the lanterns is two-fold.
First was the fire hazard and the
second was that the lanterns could
get caught on poles or trees out of
reach of the community and
become an eyesore.
Sparling did say that, even though
he couldn’t do anything as fire
chief, he feels that the lanterns
Continued from page 1
the second day, they were struggling
and I was doing all right,” he said. “I
figured as long as I had a solid third
day, it would work well.”
The win still hadn’t quite hit him
at the competition, however.
“It’s just kind of sinking in now,”
he said on Monday. “I went in and
did well.”
The win marks the culmination of
years of work for both McGavin and
his father.
“Back when I started, it was me
and my dad and we set the goal that
one day I could make it to the
Worlds,” he said. “It was a long road,
and things didn’t always go the way
we had hoped, but I won and that’s
finally sinking in and it’s pretty
surreal.”
The win and the world
championships will mean that plans
of taking a year off from competition
may have to wait for McGavin.
He said that he might now plough
competitively next year with the
exception of the world
championships, which will require a
lot of practice, so he can make the
time to come back to Ontario in
2017 for the International Plowing
Match which is set to be held just
outside of Walton.
“That’s the plan,” he said. “I want
to compete here.”
As for competing on home soil for
another province, McGavin said that
the people who taunted him, even
with good intentions, ended up
helping him secure the win.
“I think, and I hope, that the
people who were giving me a hard
time were kind of joking,” he said.
“Hopefully they will be rooting for
me at the world championships.
“When I was struggling in the
practice rounds, a few guys from
Ontario were giving me the gears
pretty hard,” he said. “That lit a fire
under me. I wanted to show them I
can still do it. They helped me out
and made me focus a bit more.”
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