October 28, 2011 – 10:28 AM
By Tim Beebe The volunteer fire service is like a panda bear. It is black and white . . . and it’s an endangered species. The world is full of people who live a pastel existence of non-extreme colours. Such people rarely do anything black (really bad) or white (really good). They get up, go to [...]
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In the wake of the unprecedented devastation of the Slave Lake fires, I find myself both incredibly proud and incredibly discouraged. Let me tell you as a volunteer firefighter myself I sometimes find myself envious of the IAFF brotherhood mantra that echoes through the halls of many of the career departments in North America. Career guys [...]
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It was 4am on Christmas morning several years ago that the call came in. Jim Sohan knew that ‘structure fire’ calls were usually very long ones, and that this would likely keep him and the rest of the volunteer firefighters with the Winnipeg Beach Department very busy well into Christmas Day. Without a second thought [...]
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May 18, 2011 – Whatever else is going on in Canada this week pales in comparison to the fires that are ravaging Slave Lake and other communities in Alberta. These fires come just as the flood waters are receding to the east in Manitoba and Quebec, but no doubt those Albertans whose homes and businesses [...]
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The hazmat technician squinted through the blizzard and sized up my crew. “Are you qualified firefighters, or are you just volunteers?” he asked. With a quick glance over my shoulder I said, “We’re qualified volunteers.” It was a defensive, smart aleck response, but at least he was spared a black eye from one of my [...]
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I have just returned from a ten-day trip to Pennsylvania where I had the pleasure of visiting fire companies throughout the state. I spoke in front of a few of them, went on a call or two with a few of them and had a beer or two with all of them. As with everything [...]
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