The province of British Columbia has added breast cancer, prostate cancer and multiple myeloma to the list of illnesses covered by the Workers Compensation Act under the Firefighters Occupational Disease Regulation.
Victoria Fire Department has adopted a program developed by the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Vancouver Fire Department that focuses on pre-incident care for its first responders. Drug overdose calls in Victoria have recently increased dramatically.
Research that repeatedly exposed sleeping children to the sound of standard smoke detectors found more than 80% of the children, aged between two and 13, did not respond to the alarm. Dave Coss, fire investigator and watch commander at Derbyshire fire and rescue service, and scientists at the University of Dundee are carrying out a study testing new fire alarm sounds.
The National Fire Protection Association has issued a bulletin on fire hose safety that reminds the fire service of the importance of following NFPA 1961 (Standard on Fire Hose) and NFPA 1962 (Standard for the Care, Use, Inspection, Service Testing and Replacement of Fire Hose, Couplings, Nozzles and Fire Hose Appliances).
Alberta’s wildfire plan for 2017 includes longer contracts for water tankers hired to fight fires and increased fines for abandoning campfires or burning during bans.
Orange County Fire Rescue recently launched two lifesaving apps that encourage citizens with CPR training to respond to sudden cardiac arrest incidents near them. The apps, PulsePoint Respond and Pulse Point AED, notify users through their mobile devices that someone nearby is in need of CPR and direct them to the nearest pubicly accessible automated external defibrillator.
Australia’s all-time worst bushfire disaster took place in February 2009, when an exceptional heat wave sparked 400 fires in the state of Victoria. One hundred seventy-three people died and 414 were injured. February 7 has become widely referred to in Australia as Black Saturday.
After Hamilton’s fire chief warned a user fee could deter people from calling for help city officials have decided not to charge for rope rescues at local waterfalls. Instead they will look into creating a map of trouble spots on the Niagara Escarpment, where numerous rope rescues took place last year.
In recognition of his longstanding dedication to public service and public safety, the Justice Institute of British Columbia will confer an honourary Doctor of Laws degree upon Stephen Gamble, the Township of Langley’s Fire Chief. Gamble has spent 38 years in the fire service, starting as a volunteer firefighter, and last year received the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs Full-time Fire Chief of the Year award.