Hearts were warm inside the Midland Fire department headquarters this week as the joint municipalities of Midland and Penetanguishene received a $10,000 total donation from Enbridge Gas Inc., as part of a program to assist with training materials for firefighters.
Safe Community Project Assist is a program through the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council which supplements Ontario communities where Enbridge Gas operates, with donations to volunteer and composite fire departments. This year, 50 provincial fire departments including Midland and Penetanguishene were in receipt of the $250,000 total donation.
Many representatives attended the event from the Midland fire department and Penetanguishene fire and emergency services, as well as Enbridge Gas Inc.
Joint fire chief Richard Renaud appeared in his first event since arriving in the area last week.
“This donation of $5,000 to each municipality will go a long way,” said Renaud. “Enbridge Gas has been a great partner with the fire services and we were very thankful that we were able to get those donation. It allows us to provide up-to-date training for our staff to meet our certification, but also to properly deliver services to the community."
Midland deputy fire chief Rich Lowell said that between the two departments, roughly 65 firefighters could make use of the training materials over the next three to five years depending on the up-to-date relevance within the textbooks.
“It starts with the basic firefighter training,” said Lowell, “and then some of the materials get up to where they’re getting into officer development or training officer development. “
Penetanguishene CAO Jeff Lees was grateful for the support from Enbridge, allowing the shared service to prosper.
“The true value is that we’re two neighbours that operate two fire departments in two adjoining municipalities,” said Lees, “and we provide virtually all the same services and opportunities to work collaboratively and more effectively in what we deliver to the community.”
Rodney Smallwood, operations supervisor for the GTA West region of Enbridge Gas Inc., was proud to be a part of the ceremony as a contribution representative for the company.
“We deal with the fire departments a lot when we’re dealing with damages, pipeline strikes, and those sorts of things; it’s good to get involved with the local fire departments,” said Smallwood. “I’m happy to be part of this campaign, and it makes me feel good to come out to these smaller fire departments and assist where we can.”
Since the launch of Safe Community Project Assist in 2012, 294 grants have been provided to Ontario fire departments for additional firefighter training.
In addition, Renaud wished to remind all residents to: clear snow for fire service access especially around hydrants; test fire alarms and carbon monoxide alarms and ensure they are in working condition; and practise fire escape plans in case of emergency.