$20k of equipment stolen from rural Sask. Fire hall. And it's not the only one

Rural firehalls surrounding Saskatoon are having to deal with escalating thefts that could put rescue efforts in jeopardy.

Last week, a fire hall in Pike Lake operated by Delisle Fire and Rescue was broken into. Thieves opened cabinets on a pickup truck and took a variety of tools, but Chief Given’s main concern is the Jaws of Life Combi tool that was taken.

“It's, you know, anywhere from $14,000 to $18,000 just that one tool,” Given said, pointing to other items taken as well.

“Unfortunately, as a volunteer fire department, we don't have the resources to spend, $20,000 or $30,000 on a roof saw. That’s just out of our grasp.”

The Jaws of Life extrication device is meant for cutting through metal and helping dislodge people from crushed vehicles, and without one, Given says the department is vulnerable.

“I don't know what these guys are thinking, because when they need us, they call us to help them,” Given said. “And then they pull a stunt like this, and we can't help them.”

The theft in Delisle is the latest incident, but there have been others in recent weeks.

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Earlier in December, the R.M. of Grant Fire Hall, located in Vonda, was also broken into. A variety of hand tools and batteries to operate the tools were taken.

Deputy Chief Jordan Florizone arrived on Dec. 17 to see handle from a sledgehammer sawed off, doors to vehicles open and other items strewn about.

“It's just bad luck, to be honest,” he said. “You know, some delinquent from the area or outside just wanting to cause some trouble, and unfortunately, they chose a fire hall to do that.”

Both Florizone and Given say these thefts are not only detrimental to fire halls staffed by volunteers on shoestring budgets which are dependent on fundraising, but they could also affect response times or the help a firefighter could provide during an emergency.

“It's really unfortunate because like this is one of our busier times of year. Not only did they take equipment, but they also could have caused a delay in service if we were to have a call that night or early that morning,” Florizone said. “In the past five weeks we’ve had 13 vehicle accidents that we responded to.”

Given is thankful Pike Lake’s fire hall acts as more of a satellite facility, but years of efforts and fundraising went in to stocking that hall, and not having an extrication device and having to wait for one from the main hall to arrive could be the difference between life and death in an emergency.

“It’s a real blow to the community that are waiting for us to get there and know that we're not going to be able to do the same job that we could have done before Christmas,” Given said. “It’s really disheartening.”

Earlier in the fall, Borden Fire and Rescue posted on social media of surveillance footage when they were broken into. Brand new emergency radios were stolen, leaving the department helpless for a period.

Florizone isn’t sure what to make of rural fire departments having to go through repeated break-ins.

“I find it sad and you just kind of feel this sense of sometimes hopelessness when you're confronted by something like that,” he said. “What can you really do in the end?”

One positive to come out of the recent string of burglaries is the level of support from the local communities and volunteer fire departments across the province. Multiple volunteer departments often respond to a call and can fill a void depending on staffing levels.

Given said shortly after the Pike Lake hall was broken into, he got a call from the owner of Tans-Care Rescue, a Langham-based company, while on vacation in Texas asking Given what he needed.

By 9 a.m. the next morning, the Delisle and District Fire Department had a new Jaws of Life tool.

“We all know what it's like out there, right? And we don't want to see any of our brothers in other departments go without these tools that are necessary to perform the job that they do to keep them safe,” Florizone said.