Imagine being at the beck and call of an entire town and surrounding area in the event of any emergency situation, no matter what time of the day or night.
Now imagine that you don’t get paid for it because you’re a volunteer, with a whole other job that takes up the meat of your day, or a family that depends on you being home in the evenings; again, unless you get that call.
That’s the life of volunteer firefighters, and they’re crucial in this part of the province. Living in rural Saskatchewan, it goes without saying that this time of the year is going to result in more than its fair share of calls, whether it’s a grass fire or some farm machinery or property that just went up in flames. You might be called to a neighborhood just across town, or you might end up on something of a road trip to “INSERT LOCATION HERE” anywhere in the rural municipality.
Next Friday night, the community of Outlook is set to honour their own firefighters with a special banquet that will also serve as a fundraiser for the department. A number of awards are going to be presented to those who’ve served in the past, there’ll be a catered supper that I’m sure is going to be delicious as always, and a guest speaker will be in attendance in the form of Ernie Louttit, a former Saskatoon police officer – the city’s third Indigenous officer in the history of the force – who went on to become an author who wrote about his experiences while wearing the badge.
It’s an event that’s probably long overdue, and perhaps it goes without saying that one night probably isn’t enough time to honour the fire crew for the work that they’ve done and continue to do.
A guy could likely write any number of stories or columns dedicated to 2017 alone when it comes to how busy Outlook’s fire department was, but just a few highlights…
They were on the scene when the home of the Martens family burned down on their farm just east of Highway 219 in January. I can’t imagine having to brave the cold to battle the flames, nor the emotions that were involved since the fire ended up claiming a life, that of family patriarch Gordon Martens.
They were on the scene when a semi-truck trailer full of pigs overturned in the ditch off of Highway 15, just by the Highway 45 junction in March. Traffic had to be rerouted for a few hours on a major highway, while sadly, a number of the animals ended up having to be euthanized. It’s probably one of the more bizarre calls in recent memory, that’s for sure.
They were on the scene when Outlook’s downtown business sector was in danger of going up in flames. Over the Easter weekend in April, the former Outlook Electric building and a neighboring office space became engulfed, calling the crew down in the middle of the night and resulting in at least 12 hours of work going into the following afternoon.
Outlook’s fire department, much like any crew from around the province, has a rich and storied history, and some of that history is enough to bring a smile to one’s face.
One such instance that I’ll always remember was a few summers ago in 2015, when the province was going through an especially tough year for wildfires up north. Well, leave it to the guys in Outlook to decide to lend a hand wherever they could, and a group of them left on a Monday morning in July to go and help their fellow firefighters.
Their itinerary had them up north for the business week, returning home that Friday afternoon. That morning at the office, I got a message from a family member who had an idea to welcome the guys home with signs as the trucks came back into town; just a nice gesture that said how proud people were of them. I spread the word as fast as I could since we only had a few hours until they were to arrive in Outlook, and even though it ended up being a rainy afternoon, the guys had a welcoming party waiting for them back at the fire hall; wives who missed their husbands and kids who missed their fathers. Quite a sight to behold.
I’ve always found it pretty cool how Outlook stands out from a lot of other communities by honoring its citizens, businesses, youth and groups with an annual banquet, and now they add something honoring their local firefighters.
Now I’m wondering if some form of special recognition for RCMP or EMS workers may be coming down the line…?
For this week, that’s been the Ruttle Report.
