Huron Expositor, 2000-08-02, Page 1August 2, 2000
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In brief
Memorial
parade
one of two
taking place
at this
weekend's
convention
This weekend's
Firefighters' Association
of Ontario convention
features two parades the
public can watch.
The first is the most
serious of all the events
taking place during the.
convention as a
memorial to firefighters
who have died.
"It's in honour of the
fallen firefighters," said
Paul Hildebrand of the
Seaforth Fire
Department.
He was at last year's
parade in Paris where
more than 600
firefighters in full dress
uniforms took part in the
'parade.
The parade will leave
the convention grounds
at the Seaforth and
District Community
Centres on Sunday
morning at 9 a.m. as
firefighters march to the
Legion cenotaph where a
short service will take
place in honour of
firefighters who have.
died in the past year.
"It's a very tearful day
for us; especially if
you've lost a couple guys
from your department," ,
said Hildebrand.
There are at least 20
flag bearers in the parade
and a moment's silence is
held when the names of
every fallen firefighter
are read. •
The second parade will
lifts spirits and make
somenoise on Monday,
following the traditional
parade route from the
Egmondville side of
Main Street to the
community centrc'and
will feature about 100
entries with bands, fire
trucks and floats.
"Everybody puts a
truck or float in," said
Hildebrand.
Seaforth, as the host
department, will lead the
parade.
"Everything we own
will be in that parade,"
Hildebrand said, adding,
rain or shine, both
parades take place.
By Scott Hilgendorff
Inside...
Moonlight
madness..
Page S
basisitalL
Papel
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Firefighters' convention
will heat up Seaforth
Population could double this weekend as firefighters arrive
By Scott Hilgendorff
Expositor Editor
The Town of Seaforth
could almost double in size
this weekend as up to 2,000
people are expected for the
Firefighters' Association of
Ontario's annual convention,
starting Friday.
"The town will double,"
said Paul Hildebrand, just
one of the Seaforth Fire
Department's volunteers who
has been working for more
than a year, preparing for the
convention.
It marks the 101st year of
the FFAO and the 99th
annual convention with two
years missed 'during the
World Wars.
And while there's plenty of
official firefighting business
to attend to during the
convention, there's also
plenty of fun, much of which
the whole community can
take part. •
Formal Ontario Fire
College courses are taking
place all week,in Seaforth
•with more than 100
firefighters learning
everything from how to put
out a large propane fire to
rescues involving accidents
with farm equipment.
The courses lead into
Friday,'s convention start
with an FFAO executive
meeting and reception at the
Seaforth and District
Community Centre's main
hall.
Following that, the
community is invited 'to
come out to the Seaforth Fire
Teams of firefighters work to put out
courses being offered this week for
convention. About 100 firefighters are
Scott Hilgendorff photo
a propane tank fire Monday at the Seaforth Agriplex. This was part of just one of the
firefighters as a lead-in to the weekend's Firefighters' Association of Ontario annual
in town this week taking some of the six courses being offered.
(See a related feature on Page 7)
Town gets new webpage
By Susan Hundertmark
Expositor Staff
When Ron Lavoie was looking for a
small town to move to from Kitchener two
years ago, he spent a lot of time on the
Internet before visiting each town and
finally deciding on Seaforth.
That's one of the reasons the Business
Retention and Expansion (BR and E) vice -
chair saw the need for a fresh and
interesting website for the Town of
Seaforth.
"More and more towns are seeing the
benefit of creating a webpage. There is an
endless list of needs out there and more and
more people I talk to use the internet," he
says.
Seaforth's new website, which has been
up and running for about a month at the
website address www.town.seaforth.on.ca.
is a recent project of the 13R and E
committee. .
Through Lavoie's• wife's connections at
Conestoga College, the BR and E created a
partnership last fall with the college's
microcomputer administration program in
which a class of 27 students, divided into
teams of three, created sample webpages for
See WEPAGES, Page 3
Hospital board makes effort to keep
ambulance service in Seaforth
By Susan Hundertmark
Expositor Staff
The Seaforth
Community Hospital board
is sending a letter today
(Aug. 2) to Huron County
council expressing its
willingness to pay for
ambulance bays at the
hospital, along with 15
letters of support from
surrounding hospitals and
municipalities.
"We're not sure if they
(Huron County council)
had all the information the
last time since it was
mostly verbal information
they got," says hospital
board chair Michael Hak.
Huron County council
passed a motion at its July
meeting moving the
Seaforth ambulance
service either to Clinton or
to a point between Clinton
and Se forth on Highway
8, despe arguments from
Seaforth Reeve Lin
Steffler against the move,
including a verbal offer of
interest from the hospital
board to build the
ambulance bays.
"We are hopeful they'll
(county council will) at
least look at it a little
closer now that it's in
writing," says Hak.
Hak says the hospital
board has saved money
over the years in a reserve
fund from rents paid to the
hospital for the use of
various properties it owns.
"The money has nothing
to do with the hospital
operating budget and
nothing to do with the
partnership;" he says.
Hak says the hospital
board is hoping that
concerned residents of
Seaforth and area will
continue to write letters to
their local reeves in
support of keeping an
ambulance service in
Seaforth and the new
muncipality of Huron East.
once Seaforth, Brussels
and the townships of
McKillop, Tuckersmith
and Grey amalgamate Jan.
1, 2001.
Department's "pumper pull"
on the race track by the
Agriplex.
"It's along the category of
a tug-of-war to see who can
pull a pumper 50 feet with
the best time," said Jim Sills,
a captain with the fire
department and another
organizer of some of the
convention's many events.
Bleachers will be set up
where the public can watch
the competitions take place.
Fire departments will enter
teams to see who can pull the
truck past the 50 -foot mark
the quickest.
Sills said this particular
challenge was set up 'by the
Seaforth Fire Department for
Friday night with regular,,
annual firefighter games
taking place' both Saturday
and Sunday beside the
Agriplex.
At 2:30 p.m. Saturday, the
first round of games take
place featuring hoseraces, a
rescue race and a ladder race
that sees teams of firefighters
dragging hoses up a ladder
and firing water at targets
with the fastest time winning.
Sunday's games start at 1
p.m. and include a waterbail
competition where
firefighters compete against
each other firing hoses with
water at a large yellow ball
suspended from a cable. The
first one to get the ball to the
other side wins.
The games are an annual
tradition with trophies up for
See FIREFIGHTERS, Page 2
Madness under the moonlight
Reilly Rightmyer, Samantha Harrison, Shannon Hagen were
joined by a balloon hat as they toured around the events and
activities tied into the Business Improvement Area's moonlight
madness event Friday night.
Scott Hilgendorff photo
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