Members of the South Green Lake Volunteer Fire Department (SGLVFD) recently completed the Emergency Vehicle Operations (EVO) component of the Structure Firefighter Competency & Training Playbook.
Trainers Del Westfall and Dave Plenert led the firefighters through the PowerPoint, test and practical portions of the EVO course at the fire hall.
The training is based on the British Columbia Fire Department Standards, which identifies the performance requirements for drivers of fire department vehicles.
The course was based on driver safety, responsibility and skills training.
All of the participating firefighters passed the test.
The practical portion of the course was conducted on the fire hall parking lot and on a nearby property.
Firefighters got to drive one of two pumpers, a tender and the water supply truck through the courses that tested five skills.
They included going through a serpentine course both forward and backward, parking in a gap with a decreasing width, doing a three-point turn, backing into a gap on the passenger and backing into a gap on the driver’s side.
Firefighter callouts
SGLVFD firefighters responded to two vehicular incidents on the Labour Day long weekend.
The first incident involved an Off-Road Vehicle accident that resulted in minor injuries.
The second incident involved a motorcycle accident that sent the injured rider to the hospital.
Fire ban lifted
Due to a reduced risk of wildfire activity in the Cariboo Fire Centre (CFC), the ban on Category 2 open fires was lifted on Sept. 13.
The following activities will be allowed within the CFC:
- one to two concurrently burning piles no larger than two metres high by three metres wide;
- the burning of stubble or grass over an area less than 0.2 hectares;
- the use of sky lanterns;
- the use of fireworks, including firecrackers;
- the use of tiki torches and similar kinds of torches;
- the use of binary exploding targets;
- the use of burn barrels or burn cages; and
- the use of air curtain burners.
Pile burning
South Green Lake residents may see smoke and perhaps flames when BC Wildfire Service burn piles of woody debris at Nolan Creek Provincial Park, starting on Sept. 16 with burning going off and on until Oct. 31.
CFC crews have been piling up accumulated debris as part of a fuel mitigation project to reduce risk of wildfires.
These piles will only be lit if conditions are suitable and allow for quick smoke dissipation.
BC Wildfire Service employees will be on-site and monitoring these fires.