Re: Didsbury Fire Department
It was revealed on July 10 that there were problems with our fire department. At least five senior members resigned with several others ready to walk out. There were 16 letters of complaint given to the Town of Didsbury back in May and a third party was brought in to try to resolve the issue. The Town of Didsbury sent out a news release on July 12 and then called special meetings for July 17 and July 18. The county also called for a special meeting with the ICC committee for July 20.
So it was back on July 10 that I invited a few members of the community to a meeting to discuss the situation.
After consulting with a number of others to get the facts we decided to use social media to get the word out. I’m not one to use social media for something like this but we all felt this was the most timely way and the forum we used is a respected, factual page.
Since that time the Town of Didsbury has interviewed several firefighters individually in camera with eight or nine council members and staff. True, some of the issues discussed warranted privacy and confidentiality but the community needs to know what is at risk and what is being done to fix this.
This is not political! This is about a safe community and a safe environment for our volunteer firefighters who put their lives on the line to protect us all. The training officer is one of the five or six who quit, and so since that time training has diminished presenting another safety concern.
This is not political! This is about the fire department. Unfortunately the Town of Didsbury has decided to point the finger at previous councils for this problem which seems to be the course of action by politicians when they need to get the heat off of themselves.
So I ask, who is in charge of the fire department now and who was in charge with the previous council? With all of the in-camera time used to gather information how is the Town of Didsbury planning to better communicate with the community? What accomplishments have been made since July 10 and when will this be resolved? Our community has a right to know.
Cindy Tippe
Didsbury
