Langham fire chief tells town to end agreement with City of Saskatoon for emergency assistance
Langham’s fire chief is advising his town council to sever ties with the City of Saskatoon when it comes to emergency services.
He said in a letter to Langham Council that the City of Saskatoon approached the town with an offer to work together and share an Emergency Measures Organization (EMO) coordinator.
“I voiced my opinion at the time, that it was not a good idea, it is still not a good idea,” Bill McCombs said in the letter.
“The claim was that they would help us should an incident occur, and this has not happened once,” he wrote. “We have never, ever had any assistance from the City of Saskatoon, even if requested.
“The City of Saskatoon will look after the City of Saskatoon first.”
A statement from Saskatoon’s deputy fire chief of operations, Rob Hogan, said there was no such agreement.
“The emergency response services that the Saskatoon Fire Department (SFD) provides to neighbouring municipalities are most often covered off through either a response agreement or a mutual aid agreement,” the statement said.
“The Town of Langham does not have a response agreement or a mutual aid agreement with the Saskatoon Fire Department.”
Hogan said that the partnership Saskatoon has with Langham and several other communities signed in 2020 was to build regional resiliency.
“The program provides for one regional resiliency specialist position to support all member municipalities. This position is funded through a cost-sharing arrangement between the SFD and all the member municipalities. In any emergency management program, no one person can be the only person available for response – the goal is to build resiliency and backup so that there are multiple people within a community who are able to respond and lead.”
McCombs said the deal was not beneficial for Langham.
“This has cost the Town of Langham a substantial amount of money with zero return,” he wrote.
He also wrote that they have had a better working relationship with the fire department in Dalmeny. They have their own EMO, something that McCombs advised for Langham.
Langham Mayor, Gary Epp, said he was not sure what direction council will take.
“They've never been involved in anything,” he said, referring to the EMO in Saskatoon.
He pointed to a recent emergency that happened in his town.
“Alerts on everybody's telephone about the incident, people all the way to Winnipeg were aware and we had no response from Saskatoon," Epp said.
Langham council will be meeting with the EMO in September and make a decision after that, Epp said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.