This blog was created with SiteGrinder 3 Tue, 05 Oct 2010 18:53:45 -0500 Tue, 05 Oct 2010 18:53:45 -0500 Sometimes I think I don't know when to keep my mouth shut! Speaking to the Fire Chief a while ago, the subject of Fire Prevention Officer came up, and how it needed some different skills - like teaching - and I was teaching for a few years - so I fit the bill. Well I agreed to give it a go last Saturday morning, I was handed a huge manual, lots of reading material and several DVDs, then I was told Monday starts National Fire Prevention Week - AAAAAAGGGHHH! So much to do and ... ?n=1&p=000010 ?n=1&p=000010 The last few days have been really warm with temperatures up around 32C. Normally that wouldn't be an issue because we're on the coast and there's usually a breeze off the sea, but not recently, it just got hotter and hotter. I've been busy with a project for the Fire Department, photographing the Fire Engines and Rescue Trucks as well as the Fire Halls. It's been a nightmare removing all of the power lines from the images, and all of the shadows as well! It's a job that nee... ?n=1&p=000009 ?n=1&p=000009 Yesterday we had a First Responders practice in the local swimming pool. We were practicing rescuing patients with spinal injuries from water. Apparently this can happen anywhere, not just in the swimming pools, like at the wharf or in one of the many lakes nearby. The training was a really good insight in what to expect, we covered several different scenarios and tried out some different techniques. The pool staff, lifeguards and Ambulance were also involved. Everybody takes thes... ?n=1&p=000008 ?n=1&p=000008 My Mum Dad are staying here with us for a while. We decided to on a whale watching trip from Telegraph Cove. We went out with Stubbs Island Whale Watching Tours and had a great time. The water was calm despite the high winds we'd been having lately. We left the dock and headed out into the Blackfish Sound. The first whale we saw was a Grey Whale, they are quite rare in these waters, so we felt honoured to see one. Having said that, we only saw a small bart of the whale's bac... ?n=1&p=000007 ?n=1&p=000007 Not sure if anyone sees these posts, but here goes anyway The last 2 days have been a truly incredible experience and probably the biggest measure of how my life is changing. We (as in the Sayward Emergency Services) responded to a motor vehicle accident at 05:08 on Wednesday morning. The 'accident' was a fuel tanker complete with trailer that had hit a full grown bull elk on highway 19. The tanker had skidded off the road and rolled into a ditch that was ab... ?n=1&p=000006 ?n=1&p=000006 More Fire practice, today we took two fire trucks out towards Kelsey Bay. There we split into two teams and had a bit of a competition. The idea was to get 5 Fire fighters into the truck, pull up to the fire hydrant, one crew gets out and pulls the main hose down and wraps it around the hydrant, the truck pulls away to the 'scene' unravelling the hose as it goes. The next two operators arrange and connect the h... ?n=1&p=000005 ?n=1&p=000005 June 30, 2010, 10:29 pm Well, today I decided to see how fit I was, so I jumped on the bike and peddled off toward Sayward junction, I made it to the Info centre at the Junction, that's about 10km from the townsite, so just over 20km round trip. My legs were well pumped up by the time I go... ?n=1&p=000004 ?n=1&p=000004 June 27, 2010, 2:52 am Thursday night saw Sayward Volunteer Firefighterspracticeon a mock bus crash. The Ambulance Unit Chief, Pat Rusch, staged a bus accident on some wa... ?n=1&p=000003 ?n=1&p=000003 June 18, 2010, 12:39 am Wow! Today was a long day, after an easy start we headed up Bill's Trail on Mt H'Kusam. The intention was to get to the lookout above checkpoint one, and we made it OK. Some of the terrain was really tough, it took us almost 2 hours, but the view was amazing.... ?n=1&p=000002 ?n=1&p=000002 Some kind person volunteered my photographic skills to take pictures of the conditions at the top of the Kusam Klimb trail for our local up and coming endurance event [ http://www.kusamklimb.com ], check out the trail guide! I did manage to get as far as checkpoint one, before deciding that calling out the mountain rescue was not a good idea, so... ?n=1&p=000001 ?n=1&p=000001