Your fire department has been dispatched to ten incidents over the past two months:
- Shortly before noon on November 23 ten members responded to an MVA on Highway #20 between Rainy Creek Road and Aspelund Road. A southbound semi and a northbound pickup had narrowly avoided a collision with each other but both vehicles ended up in the west ditch. All occupants were able to get out safely but traffic had to be controlled while EMS evaluated them and tow trucks removed the vehicles.
- Late in the evening on November 28 crews attended an accident on Highway #12 near RR 28-3. A deer had unwisely crossed the road in front of a pickup. Firefighters cared for the patient while awaiting EMS, carefully controlled traffic in the dark and scraped the remnants off the roadway.
- On December 3 a call was received of an electrical hazard at a rural residence southeast of Bentley. The occupants reported a burning electrical smell but the odour had dissipated by the time fire crews so the TIC camera and gas sniffer was used to detect any unusual heat or fumes. None was found so the homeowner was advised to have the furnace and electrical systems professionally inspected.
- On December 4 nine firefighters responded to a structure fire in Bentley. Smoke had been discovered belching from the home's vents immediately following a brief power outage. The furnace was quickly turned off and the occupants wisely evacuated. The house was inspected with the TIC and gas sniffer and nothing concerning was found so the homeowners were informed and the tenants returned home.
- About 4 p.m. on December 21 four members were called to a medical assist north of town. Ponoka County West was called in to help Bentley with an elderly cardiac patient who sadly passed away.
- At 10:34 p.m. on December 23 an alarms call was received from a rural residence west of Bentley. The home's smoke detector was discovered by the homeowner to have a sensor problem and crews were stood down.
- At 7:45 on Christmas Eve ten members were sent to assist Lacombe Fire Department with a structure fire at Highway #12 and RR 27-5. This was called in by a passerby who apparently saw something. No one was home at the farm and an investigation was conducted, however nothing was found and fire crews from Lacombe, Bentley and Blackfalds returned home.
- On December 26 another structure fire was reported north of Lacombe and Bentley was called for Mutual Aid. Ten members were sent to what was discovered to be a controlled burn in a dumpster.
- On the evening of December 30 firefighters were sent to the Westview Apartment complex where a smoke alarm was sounding inside one of the apartments. The manager was unable to get access to the unit as it was somehow blocked from the inside. Crews forced the door open and discovered a pan had been left on the stove with the burner still on. The stove was turned off and the pan removed. There was no damage to the apartment or the contents.
- And on January 3 around suppertime another alarms call was received, this time from a home in Lake Trail Estates in Bentley. All four of the carbon monoxide detectors were going off so the residents were evacuated. The gas sniffer detected elevated levels so the doors were opened to ventilate until acceptable levels were reached. ATCO was notified and firefighters remained until they arrived, then turned the scene over to them.
This has been a busy year for the Bentley District Fire Department, with a new record of 91 calls received between December 1, 2016 and December 1, 2017. They are broken down as follows:
3 Structure Fire
10 Vehicle Fire
14 Outside Fire
2 Smoke Investigation
1 Gas Leak/Odour
1 Explosion
19 MVA
9 Medical Assist
10 Alarms Ringing
6 Mutual Aid
3 Watercraft Rescue
2 Ice Rescue
1 Citizen Assist
7 Electrical Hazard
2 Fuel Spill
1 Body Recovery