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$r dr-Mr Wednesday, June 10, 1998 COMMUNITY CALENDAR • LIFESTYLES • SPORTS • COMMUNITY CORRESPONDENCE • TV LISTINGS Burning Desire to be a Firefighter Goes Up in Flames for Reporter No Calls During 10-Hour Shift -- by Laura J. Richards Staff Writer Nothing happened. In other words, it was not a typical day at Clarington Fire Station One on Friday, May 29. All week long the scanner scanner at The Statesman Office blared out calls of one type or another and the fire trucks would go whizzing by the office. But not the day this reporter had booked to tag along with the firefighters for a typical shift. "Usually we average three to five calls in a 24- hour period," Chief Mike Creighton told me. "You either brought good luck or bad luck, depending on how you want to look at it." "We don't get many days when nothing happens," happens," he said. "Last year we had 1,800 calls, so going for an entire 10-hour shift without without any calls is rare," he noted. He also invited The Statesman back in the fall, "when things will pick up." Thankfully, there was time to chat with firefighters firefighters Cord Weir, Ken Ostler, Carl Coatham and Tim Calhoun along with Chief Creighton and Deputy Chief Bill Hesson about their jobs. ■ Safety First Midway through the day, we went on a pre planned call to Wiggers' Yachts for a fire safety inspection. Captain Cord Weir noted each business in Clarington receives an inspection from the department department once a year. Calhoun, Coatham and Weir looked for smoke alarms and, of course, we all were captivated by the sleek sailboats undergoing their annual maintenance checks in the huge bays. Alarm for Life While on the topic of safety checks, Fire Prevention Officer Randy Reinert says in the middle of June firefighters in Bowmanville and Courticc will be pulling up in your neighbourhood in a pumper. They will then spread out to talk with residents residents about the importance importance of smoke alarms. "We will be going door to door to make sure that each house has alarms and a safety escape plan," Reinert said. If alarms need new batteries or if a house needs a smoke alarm, it is possible that the program will take care of those needs. Reinert added the firefighters firefighters will do a fire safety safety check upon request. He noted that last year there were "54 fire deaths in Ontario and most were preventable." Everyone needs-.working needs-.working alarms and an escape: plan that is practiced. "You need to have two MEET THE CHIEF -- Fire Chief Mike Creighton, of the Clarington Fire Department, is in charge of the whole operation from hiring and discipline to ensuring the collective collective agreement is adhered, to. He says a good firefighter firefighter is someone who's "got the desire to serve the public and more. It takes a special person with a certain amount of ability and the desire. And then you build upon that." ways out, and to meet in front of the house," he said. Safety Village and Fire Safety House Two of the accomplishments accomplishments the Clarington firefighters firefighters arc especially proud of arc the fire station at the Durham Regional Police Services' Fire Safety Village in Whitby and the Fire Safety House. "The town gave us the money and we built it on our own time," said Calhoun. Also on their own time, the fire department --- led by Calhoun -- built the mobile Fire Safety House. "I had read about one out west and my father helped frame it," he recalls. Lots of help was summoned later to put it into service. "It would cost $55,000 to replace it, and every fire department across Durham Region uses it," Calhoun noted. Of course, we cannot forget the fundraising efforts of the local firefighters, firefighters, including Weir's contributions in spearheading spearheading the most recent fund-raising drive. Cord Weir is the firefighter firefighter who worked hard fund-raising for five defibrillators defibrillators over the last year. When he's on the job, he tries to ensure fhat all the fire fighters arc trained in different areas, including water and ice and the defibrillators. Now, the firefighters will leam how to deliver a' baby. Speaking About Training On the topic of training, there is a lot more than turning on the hose and dampening down the structure when it comes to Fighting fires. Firefighters are constantly constantly working to improve their skills. Ostler, who was working working as the dispatcher that morning, pointed to a test form that he was filling out. "Every year you write exams to move up. I've seen other departments' ; exams and they arc laughable. laughable. Our exams are tough and put together by our deputy. I would put the guys in our department up against any others," Ostler said. \ Ostler also noted, that the firefighters in Clarington excel in a number number of areas. If politeness and good training counts for anything these days, Clarington residents can be assured of having- the best, Ostler said. The Fun Begins Although the phones remained quiet throughout the day, Weir decided that I couldn't spend the entire day at the hall without having some kind of fun. So, after donning the fire gear, it was time to roll out the fire hoses. Calhoun and Weir explained the hoses,had to be rolled in one of two ways to ensure that the ends are accessible when needed. One of the hoses had been flipped open. So, wearing boots, pants, jacket jacket and helmet I tried to bend over to roll up the hose. That's when the helmet helmet kept falling down., Assessing the situation, I decided to drop to the floor on my knees and slowly crawl along- the length of the extended hose, v as. L ' \vour)d-ity.upr: -, Once I got'to, the endj.'J, flipped the' roll onto "'its side/stood up,and stomped ■>; the hose hill Weir noted, "that's pretty pretty good--nice and tight." MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG - Could the reporter from The Statesman roll this hose despite the too-big boots, the helmet that kept falling over her eyes, and the jacket jacket that was just a touch heavier than her usual clothes?.Yes! In fact, firefighter-for-a- day Laura Richards was told it was rolled pretty well. Not bad for someone who hadn't hadn't even been on the job for a day. They didn't Plan to be Firefighters CLEANING UP -- Firefighter Carl Coatham cleans off the lace masks used during a demonstration. The masks arc cleaned using a disinfectant and then dried off for the next time they are needed. Contrary to what you might think, many of the. staff at Station One (Bowmanville) didn't dream of growing up to be firefighters. Some started out in other occupations such as office worker, draftsman, or a member of- the General Motors staff. Two of the firefighters I talked to originally wanted to be police officers. Here are some examples of how a few of Clarington's firefighters firefighters found their careers. Fire Chief Mike Creighton: "I wanted to be a police officer. I was working with Nissan Canada, working with price lists converting yen to dollars." Creighton recalled he had heard that the fire department where lie lived " was hiring. "I stopped into the hall on my way home after work, I filled out the application and they tested- me." He admitted that, in the beginning, he was afraid of heights. But that didn't discourage him. Deputy Fire Chief Bill Hesson: He says he wanted wanted to work at General Motors and did so, working working his way up to supervisor supervisor status, If it had not been for a neighbour he watched leaving his home in a dead run at all hours of the day and night, and being curious curious about it, Hesson may never have.arrived where lie is today. "My next door neighbour neighbour would periodically run out of the house and jump into his vehicle. When I asked him about it, lie told me about his part- time job." Hesson recalled that his neighbour noticed his interest and said he would speak for him the next time a position came up. As for the rest, "it is history," Hesson said. Fire Prevention Officer Randy Reinert: "I took fire protection at school -- Seneca College. I find it fulfilling trying to help people of our community." community." However, like Creighton, Reinert didn't start out as a member of the firefighting team in Clarington. "I started as a draftsman, draftsman, then with an insurance insurance company and a building building inspector," he said. ' Continued on page 12 HOSERS -- Statesman reporter Laura Richards suited up on Friday, May 29, for what : she hoped would be an exciting day with the Clarington Fire Department. Instead of- ; attending numerous calls, she spent most of her day interviewing firefighters and ; department staff. She did get a chance to try out the fire hose, helped by Firefighter, • Carl Coatham. : 1 CHECKING IT OUT -- Firefighter Tim Calhoun inspects the equipment on one of- the trucks. The firefighters check the condition and placement of the equipment every day, They arc looking for rust, along with the normal wear and tear. It's part of the con-: tinning documentation on the condition of their vehicles.