Early this morning the community’s school, town hall and RCMP station were on fire. Arson is the suspected cause and a man has been charged in connection with the fires.
“It’s a very sad situation, it’s a lot of infrastructure for the town, it’s an unfortunate situation for the firefighters and the community as a whole,” said Fudge.
And with everything that’s happened, it makes department’s take notice of their own approaches.
With the Gander Fire Department ready to respond 24 hours a day, seven days a week, a fair amount of equipment at its disposal, and a 50-member staff, Fudge is hopeful it could handle multiple fire situations.
In addition, he noted the department works in conjunction with other municipalities and Gander International Airport.
“We have had to call (airport assistance) before, for larger fires in the past and it has proven effective,” said Fudge. “They can come down with their crash trucks and supply us with a fair amount of water in a short period of time.
“We would like to think that we have all contingencies covered, but there could be surprises along the way.”
Early this morning the community’s school, town hall and RCMP station were on fire. Arson is the suspected cause and a man has been charged in connection with the fires.
“It’s a very sad situation, it’s a lot of infrastructure for the town, it’s an unfortunate situation for the firefighters and the community as a whole,” said Fudge.
And with everything that’s happened, it makes department’s take notice of their own approaches.
With the Gander Fire Department ready to respond 24 hours a day, seven days a week, a fair amount of equipment at its disposal, and a 50-member staff, Fudge is hopeful it could handle multiple fire situations.
In addition, he noted the department works in conjunction with other municipalities and Gander International Airport.
“We have had to call (airport assistance) before, for larger fires in the past and it has proven effective,” said Fudge. “They can come down with their crash trucks and supply us with a fair amount of water in a short period of time.
“We would like to think that we have all contingencies covered, but there could be surprises along the way.”
Front and center
For Appleton Mayor Derm Flynn, Milltown has been front and center in his mind since he woke up this morning.
“Every time we have a fire or any kind of incident at a town hall I always ask the staff, ‘Are we prepared from a records standpoint?’,” said Flynn. “That’s all you can do, you don’t have a second building. Obviously, having back up material, back up information (is important). For us, for any town, losing the records is a big deal.”
In the event of emergency, Appleton would have to avail of the Glenwood Appleton Fire Department
“We have an agreement in relation to our fire services with the Town of Glenwood and those guys do a wonderful job on that count,” said Flynn.
- files from Gail Collins
