A bill, the Rea and Walter Act, which would make it mandatory for all lightweight constructed buildings to be identified as such has passed second reading in the Ontario Legislature. The bill is named after two firefighters who lost their lives while fighting a fire in a building with a roof made with lightweight construction material.
Since early 2016 a group of scientists from the Canadian Forest Service and colleagues from the Canadian provinces, the United States and Mexico have been working on a two-year plan to map the probability of wildires in most of the permanent settlements in Canada’s boreal forest.
A study conducted by researchers at the University of Edinburgh found firefighters exposed to extremely high heat experienced elevated core body temperatures for up to four hours after exposure and their blood became “stickier” and more likely to form clots.
On April 19, 1995 domestic terrorists carried out a truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City. The explosion killed 168, including 19 babies and children, injured more than 680 and destroyed or damaged 324 other buildings within a 16 block radius.
The Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs says most Canadian homeowners don’t have to have CO detectors in their homes. Only homes built in 2010 or later require the lifesaving devices.
The Hamilton Spectator’s Code Red Project has highlighted the connections between socioeconomic factors and fires. Fires in Hamilton happen more frequently and are more likely to be deadly in the poorest parts of the city.
The Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction has released its final report on the Fort McMurray wildfire. The report, written by Alan Westhaver, concludes the Canadian approach to wildland/urban interface fires “requires a radical sweeping strategic shift that brings primary focus onto the root of the problem.”
Ford is recalling more than 570,000 vehicles with 1.6 litre four-cylinder turbocharged engines because problems with coolant circulation could lead to engine fires. So far 29 fires have been reported in the U.S. and Canada. A separate problem can cause door locks to malfunction.
Six Nations Fire Department is training firefighters from all over Ontario in a new 50,000 square foot facility that includes an open concept classroom and interior training house. The department is seeking private career college designation.
The Langford BC Fire Department is looking for connections to help Chief Ghulam Hazrat, who was seriously wounded in a 2011 suicide bombing in Kandahar and requires further treatment to save his life. Hazrat took part in training in Langford in 2008.