Get a close-up demonstration of local mine rescue expertise in downtown Sparwood on Saturday, May 13.

The 96^th annual East Kootenay Zone Mine Rescue and First Aid competition will be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at various locations in Sparwood.

The competition is organized each year by East Kootenay Mines Industrial Safety Association (EKMISA), and Teck’s Coal Mountain Operations is this year’s host mine.

“We decided it would be appropriate to hold the event in Sparwood this year as the community marks the 50^th anniversary of the Balmer North explosion, which killed 15 miners and injured 10 others in 1967,” said EKMISA president Sheldon Tenant.

“This competition was created 96 years ago to allow different mine rescue teams to compete against each other and learn from each other’s training, making mining safer for everyone. During the event, each team will lay a wreath and hold a minute’s silence at the Miners’ Memorial to recognize those who have been lost in the history of mining in the Elk Valley.”

“We hope that holding the competition in the community will encourage more people to come down to support our local teams who spend so much time training and preparing for this event. Their hard work and dedication is a big reason why our modern mines and communities are safe places to work and live.”

The competition will include six-person mine rescue teams and three person first aid teams from all five Elk Valley mines, plus youth first aid teams from Sparwood Fire Department and Elk Valley Cadets.

The teams will be judged on how they use their skills to solve five scenarios.

The fire task will be held at the Causeway Bay Hotel parking lot; the bench skills task will be held at the Miners Memorial in Centennial Square and will include a minute’s silence and wreath laying. The rope task will be held at the Sparwood Titan Truck; the first aid task will be held next to Sparwood Museum and the mystery ‘other’ task will require a variety of skills from the teams and will be held near Sparwood Esso.

The top two teams will proceed to the B.C. Provincial Mine Rescue Competition in Kimberley on June 10.

Lead image: Local mine rescue teams will be competing against each other in the annual East Kootenay Zone competition on Saturday, May 13. Submitted photo

East Kootenay Mines Industrial Safety Association

Article Share