Didsbury is back in the provincial spotlight again, and not for a good thing. The issue between the town and the fire department is something that has escalated recently after seemingly coming out of nowhere.
The town and council have been mostly quiet about the situation, other than a press release that came out on July 12 and a joint press release with Mountain View County on July 20. In the first press release (July 12), it stated that five members of the Didsbury Fire Department have left the department recently. The exact reason why those five left, or what the issue is hasn't been released publicly but there is sure a lot of speculation in town and online.
We do know the town has been looking into internal concerns over the past few weeks. According to the release, a consultant was hired by the town and that consultant has reviewed a number of complaint letters from firefighters as well as reports.
Town CAO Harold Northcott addressed the fire department on July 4 about the consultant's findings on the undisclosed concerns but asked that department members remain quiet due to the sensitivity of the information.
Many in the community are rightfully worried that having that many firefighters resign around the same time is not conducive to having a strong fire department. There are also worries more could follow if the situation isn't dealt with properly and in a timely manner.
Being a firefighter at the best of times is not an easy job. It's essentially a volunteer position. Firefighters must not only respond to fire calls but can often be first responders on some horrible traffic accidents involving major injuries and even fatalities.
Council will be discussing the firefighter situation at their regular council meeting today (July 24). One of the items they are looking at is having a fire department safety audit. Let's hope that the audit will be the first real step in identifying and solving the issues currently plaguing the department.
Didsbury needs and deserves a fully stocked fire department to serve the community.
- Lindsay is the reporter for the Mountain View Gazette
