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T Tuesday, d A Aprilil 14 14, 2015
MUNICIPALITY
Fire and medical calls spike Medical emergencies last year in Port Alberni indicate a marked increase over 2013 numbers, say firefighters ERIC PLUMMER ALBERNI VALLEY TIMES
A February, 2014 file photo of a blaze that overtook a building at Second Avenue and Argyle last February. The fire proved to be particularly challenging for the local fire department. In their recently released annual report for 2014, structure fires amounted to five per cent of all incidents that firefighters responded to. [JERRY FEVENS FOR THE TIMES]
The Port Alberni Fire Department saw a spike in incidents last year, including nearly 100 more medical calls than what firefighters responded to in 2013. Last year’s incidents totalled 1,272, showing a marked increase from the 1,137 calls to the fire department over the previous year. The 631 medical first responder calls encompassed half of the dispatches in 2014, showing a rise from the 544 health-related emergencies firefighters dealt with in 2013. “The medical call increase [is] a trend you’re seeing North America–wide,” said fire chief Tim Pley, adding he expects this to continue as a large bulk of the population are aging into seniors. While a crew of at least five normally responds to a structure fire or rescue situation, in early 2014 the department introduced a two-firefighter approach for the frequently occurring medical situations. This different approach was “not broadly supported within the fire department” when it was first enacted, but did bring efficiencies through the use of a light rescue truck rather than a large fire engine, according to the department’s newly released
annual report. “This represents a considerable savings on fuel, wear and tear and supports the city’s cost saving program that extends the lives of fire apparatus from 20 to 30 years,” stated the report. “There were several situations during 2014 where the new response model enabled the fire department to respond to two medical emergencies at the same time, thus providing a significant improvement in level of service provision in those situations.” Over last year structure fires encompassed just five per cent of incidents the fire department responded to, and these 59 fires were four more than what the professionals faced in 2013. The department is grouped into crews of at least five members who are available at all hours of the day, an organizational structure that meets WorkSafe BC’s requirement that a minimum of four firefighters are at a scene to enter a structure on fire. In 2014 rescues took up 11 per cent of the fire department’s responses, while burning complaints and smoke investigations were another 9 per cent of last year’s total calls. See RESPONDERS, Page 9
ENVIRONMENT
Snowpack at 15 per cent of normal Low levels of precipitation on surrounding mountains part of declining trend Badovinac captures national juvenile title. Three Alberni wrestlers travelled to the nationals in Fredericton, bringing back a gold medal and two silvers. » Sports, 5
Alberni chef followed her passion into new career Phaedra McEachren recently followed her heart to continue her education and training in what has become her passion - cooking. »Taste, 10
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ERIC PLUMMER ALBERNI VALLEY TIMES
The low storage of snow in the mountains overlooking the Alberni Valley illustrates a sharply declining trend Vancouver Island has been subject to over the last four years, according to the government agency that monitors water levels around the province. This month the River Forecast Centre measured 15 per cent of the normal snowpack on the Island for this time of the year – levels that have steadily fallen since 2011 when 153 per cent was measured in April. Near Port Alberni that lack of a snowpack is even more severe with no snow-water equivalent detected on Mount Cokely by Cameron Lake on April 2 – the lowest levels measured in over 30 years. The snowpack is a vital reservoir for lakes and streams when warmer weather melts the stored precipitation over the spring and summer months. The unusually low levels detected in the region this winter have aroused concerns that a particularly dry summer is ahead. Unless Port Alberni sees heavy
This graph shows the declining trend in snowpack levels on Vancouver Island mountains. [RIVER FORECAST CENTER]
rains this spring and summer the community is facing a “high probability for water shortage,” said city engineer Guy Cicon. Environment Canada is predicting that the unseasonably warm weather will continue into the spring, bringing the possibility
of low streams this summer with high water temperatures. These conditions led to the death of thousands of young fish last year, according to the Alberni Valley Enhancement Association, a local group that works to protect and restore fish habitat.
Tobi Gardner, a hydrologist at the River Forecast Centre, said the declining snowpack levels over recent years is tied to warmer water throughout the Pacific Ocean, ranging from 1–4 Celsius above normal temperatures. The warm ocean causes low-pressure winter storm systems to evade the Island and head north to Alaska. “It kind of blocks low pressure cells from punching through to the Island and to the coast, it forces them to the north,” said Gardner. “The precipitation that has fallen comes as rain rather than snow.” With water restrictions becoming a strong possibility this summer, the affects of the low snowpack can serve as a warning for people to alter their usage habits, said Dan Schubart of the Port Alberni Transition Towns Society. He’s managed to use 220 cubic metres of rainwater annually for his property from a collection system using runoff from the roof, but believes the “golden lawn concept” of watering grass less frequently in the summer months could become a reality locals are forced to face in the future. See SNOWPACK, Page 9
Inside today What’s On 2 Alberni Region 3
Opinion 4 Sports 5
ALBERNI VALLEY TIMES VOLUME 66, NUMBER 71
Helping Hands 6 Scoreboard 7
Comics 8 Classifieds 9
On the Island 9 Taste 10
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