Haliburton County’s fire departments will be training together all weekend.
On Saturday, they’ll be at Algonquin Highlands Station 80 in Stanhope, and at Minden Rotary Park on Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to the late afternoon.
Minden Hills Fire Chief Shain Duda says they’ll be doing pumper training to keep all county firefighters up to speed on connecting hoses to trucks, hydrants, and building connections, as well as effectively operating water pumps—for any situation firefighters might run into across the county.
“[It’s so] we can all work the same, we all do the same job, we all know what’s on each other’s trucks, we all know how each department works,” says Duda. “We want to bring in the same working environment within all the departments, so that way we work really, really well when we’re coming to those mutual aid calls where we need those other departments to help each other out.”
He adds that firefighters always look forward to this kind of joint training, as it gives them a chance to get hands-on with equipment, as well as get to know other departments and their gear.
Duda says Minden Rotary Park will not be closed, but the training area will be cordoned off for the public’s safety. He asks spectators to watch from a safe distance and not cross the line.
“The public is more than welcome to come out and take some photos, some videos, ask questions and if we’re not busy we can definitely answer them,” says Duda. “Just please do not cross over our line. It’s going to be barricaded off so people are out of the way of us training, so there should be no danger to the public.”