KAMSACK, Sask. — Three incidents involving vehicles and three house fires at Badgerville on Cote Fist Nation were among calls responded to by the Kamsack Fire Department this summer.
At 11:45 p.m. on June 30, while the area was experiencing one of the heaviest downfalls of rain in memory, the brigade was called to a spot on Highway No. 8 about three miles north of Kamsack, where a vehicle had been driven into a washout on the highway.
When firefighters arrived, they found occupants of the vehicle standing on the roof of the vehicle and they used ropes, a ladder and flashlights to take them to safety, said Ken Thompson, fire chief. Firefighters stayed on the scene for about two hours controlling traffic.
At 2:30 a.m. on July 12, the department was called to a vegetation fire of trees and grass at Cote First Nation, Thompson said. It was windy and a powerline had fallen in the bush.
No fire was detected, but SaskPower was called and firefighters stayed on the scene, cautioning everyone to stay well away. Eight firefighters were at the site for about one and a half hours.
A male Norquay resident was found deceased in a vehicle on Highway No. 8 on July 12, he said. The department had received the call of a single vehicle rollover incident at 12:22 p.m.
Eleven members attended the scene for about three hours when they used the Jaws of Life to extricate the lone occupant of the vehicle and sprayed foam to smother leaking gasoline.
Another powerline incident resulted in the brigade being called at 1:28 p.m. on July 31, he said. A small fire had started on a residential porch at a home on Third Street in Kamsack where a powerline had been in contact with another line.
The fire had been extinguished by a passerby and when firefighters arrived, they wetted the area to ensure it was safe, while waiting for the arrival of SaskPower personnel.
At 8 p.m. on Aug.4, the brigade was called to the scene of an accident on Queen Elizabeth Boulevard near Wall Avenue in Kamsack, where a vehicle had hit a light standard.
At the site for about an hour, members cleared the debris, moved the pole and opened the lane to traffic.
The brigade was called to structure fires at Badgerville at Cote First Nation on Aug. 7, 10 and 12.
An abandoned single-storey bungalow was fully engulfed in fire, and a gas line was found to be venting when the brigade responded to a call at 2 a.m. on Aug. 7, Thompson said.
The fire was extinguished, the perimeter was watered and members were at the scene for about four and a half hours until SaskEnergy personnel had stopped the gas leak. The cause of the fire is unknown.
At 5:58 p.m. on Aug. 10, the brigade returned to Badgerville where they were told of a structure fire. When they arrived, firefighters found a house fully engulfed in fire and heavy smoke was seen at the back of the building.
When told of a possible entrapment in the building, firefighters searched the house once the fire had been extinguished and found no one, he said. The fire, which began in a west bedroom, is still under investigation. Thirteen members had worked at the site.
The brigade’s third call in six days to a structure fire in Badgerville was to a house at 3:30 a.m. on Aug.12, he said. Members discovered heavy smoke and hot walls in an abandoned single-storey house.
Members of the RCMP had arrived at the scene prior to the firefighters’ arrival and had quelled the fire with mud.
Eleven members of the brigade spent two hours wetting down the house, he said. It appears the fire began in the kitchen, but its cause is still under investigation.
The brigade was called to a home on Carment Avenue in Kamsack at 5:53 p.m. on Aug. 15 when a detector had indicated carbon monoxide.
No carbon monoxide or natural gas was detected, he said. Six firefighters were at the scene for about an hour.
Thompson said that everyone is welcome to attend a fundraising barbecue at the firehall from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 5 when the community will be celebrating Canada Day. Events had been postponed from July 1 because of the heavy rainfall.
Burgers or hot dogs, soda pop and chips will be available for $10 a serving. Funds raised will go towards the fire department.
Members of the brigade will be conducting the annual Canada Day fireworks in the evening at the Sportsground.
