Public asked for cooperation during emergency events

Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) staff and members of the Canal Flats Fire Department were able to quickly deal with a bin fire at the Canal Flats Transfer Station Thursday.

“We’d like to thank the Canal Flats firefighters for their assistance in wetting down the bin and ensuring the fire was fully extinguished,” said RDEK Solid Waste Superintendent Jim Penson.

“There was a large load of pine needles in the bin that were smoldering and burning. Once it was fully wet-down, the load was taken off site by our contractor so we could spread it out and ensure there were no hot spots.”

During the response to the fire, several members of the public attempted to throw their garbage in the bins. This is the second time in the last month that the public have not respected barriers at RDEK sites and have tried to dispose of their waste while there is clearly an emergency underway.

“Not only could this pose a safety concern, it inhibits our ability to respond to the incident when the public goes around barriers and tries to dispose of their waste,” said Penson.

“While we appreciate it can be very frustrating to get to the transfer station and find it temporarily inaccessible, we are asking the public’s understanding and cooperation in respecting the boundaries – especially in a situation where there is fire.”

From the time the contractor discovered there was an issue in the bin until the fire was extinguished and the bins were fully accessible was approximately one hour.

e-KNOW file photo

RDEK

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