Each October, fire departments across the province adopt messaging with aims to reduce dangerous incidents during Fire Prevention Week. This year, that message is Don’t Wait, Check the Date – an important reminder for residents to ensure smoke detectors are properly functioning.
Here at the Rocky View Weekly, we take Fire Prevention Week as an opportuntity to recognize the firefighters across the county who keep us safe.
This year was a particularly strong reminder that firefighters across the country do invaluable work on a daily basis. When Fort McMurray was decimated by wildfires, Alberta’s firefighters quickly responded – putting themselves into harm’s way and doing all they could to contain a situation, which could have quickly grown much worse.
Rocky View County crews were among those who didn’t hesitate when the call for more officers went out. In May, Crossfield Fire Chief Ben Niven said, “It is a very heartfelt willingness to go and help our neighbours, especially when they are in their time of need.”
That sentiment was shared across all departments we spoke to across the county. Though it was a time so difficult and devastating for those in Fort McMurray, the community spirit and resilience so prevalant among Albertans is what many will remember from that time.
So to our county firefighters and to those who fight fires across the province, we offer a very gracious thank-you. Though the crisis in Fort McMurray was unanticipated, it’s comforting to know the selflessness and courage exhibited by our firefighters is simply routine.
