The remains of a Coleman house that was engulfed in fire. The fire, which resulted in no casualties or injuries occurred in the early morning of Monday, October 29th.
LINDSAY GOSS
Pass Herald Reporter
A fire that engulfed a Coleman house in flames has made neighbours worried about the response time of Crowsnest Fire/Rescue in the Pass.
The fire, which resulted in no casualties or serious injuries, occurred on Monday, October 29th at 12:30 a.m., at the residence located on the 700 block of 17th Avenue.
The heat from the fire had sparked another fire to a vehicle parked on the property of the house, consuming it in flames as well.
According to a media release from Albert Headrick, Director of Protective and Community Services, four pumpers, one rescue unit, one support unit and one command unit from five stations responded.
RCMP and CPO’s provided scene control and EMS were on standby for medical assistance. ATCO Gas and Municipal Utilities responded to shut off gas and hydro.
By 1:22 a.m., 25 fire fighters had the fire under control.
“We had members on scene in under ten minutes,” said Steve Munshaw, Fire Chief of the Crowsnest Pass. “We had two pumper operations from Coleman and Blairmore both respond at the same time, with command units pulling up as well.”
He said that the fire was under control in under an hour- under control meaning that smoke and flames were contained. The initial flame front was extinguished in less than ten minutes, according to Munshaw.
“The fire department functioned very well with the 25 personnel on scene,” he said.
“However, neighbours who were on scene at the fire had a different recollection of the night.
Nearby neighbours who wish to remain anonymous said that they were not impressed with the response times of Crowsnest Fire Rescue, adding that it was the worst display of fire safety they had ever seen.
“I could’ve put out the fire faster and I have no experience in fire rescue,” one man said.
According to the anonymous sources, it took response teams at east 20 minutes to arrive on scene, and another ten minutes before they put water on the house.
The source said that when he saw the fire, there were around 25 firemen on scene but not for at least an hour after the fire was underway.
“These guys were down at the corner of the fire hydrant meandering around their truck,” he said. “My question is, why weren’t these firemen utilizing the water they had on the truck?”
“The volunteer firefighter’s goal was to be on scene in ten minutes. If the firemen were on scene at that time, they could’ve saved the truck,” he said.
“If I had any idea that the Coleman fire truck were not going to arrive right away, I could have ran, hooked up a garden hose and put out the fire myself,” he said.
“It seemed like they took forever. I was so disappointed.”
The fire is presently under investigation and estimated damage to the property was not released.
