A group of firefighters in Rollingdam have met with two provincial ministers as they prepare to take on a new, much-needed fire truck.
Last week, Local Government Minister Aaron Kennedy and Public Safety Minister Robert Gauvin met with fire chief Ivan Noddin and several members of the fire department to discuss a variety of issues facing the rural department, including the fact that its new fire truck, purchased and set for delivery later this year, is too big for the building.
“Right now, the truck that we have has to be moved over to the other bay, and the new truck, which is longer and bigger, has to go in the bay we’re standing in because it is a bigger truck and the other bay wasn’t designed for the truck the size it is,” said Noddin.
He said the bay has to be altered in some way to allow the truck to fit inside the building.
“We want to have two big trucks because we need the fire protection for our community,” he said.
The group met inside the small fire hall in Rollingdam, with a picture of the very firefighters who built the station in 1966. It discussed the challenges the department faces when responding to calls on dirt roads, rerouting around covered bridges, and spotty cell coverage, which includes not having any inside the fire station.
A photograph hangs on the wall of the fire hall that was originally built in 1966. (Nathalie Sturgeon/The Courier)
“The narrow driveways, stuff like that,” Noddin said. “It’s a rural area and you’re going to have challenges. You have to think ahead, I guess before you dart out.”
He praised the crew of volunteer firefighters with the department.
“They are very dedicated,” he said, also drawing on the help of mutual aid from the local fire departments in Charlotte County.
For Noddin, meeting with Gauvin and Kennedy meant a tremendous amount – a meeting spearheaded by local Progressive Conservative MLA Kathy Bockus.
“This has been amazing, when Kathy and I started talking about this, I never ever expected this (many) people to show up to help us out,” he said. “This means a lot to the firefighters and to the community that these guys are taking that much interest in what we do.
“A lot of times you don’t feel appreciated in what you do, but this proves exactly the opposite,” he explained.
In rural communities, like Rollingdam, there is no local municipal council and their operation and management falls directly under the purview of the Minister of Local Government, Aaron Kennedy – the former chief administrative officer of the Town of Quispamsis.
The fire hall is too small for a new truck that was ordered by the provincial government. (Nathalie Sturgeon/The Courier)
Kennedy, alongside the department, helped determine the needs of those rural communities in consultation with various stakeholders and the local MLA.
The department would have approved the purchase of a new fire truck in Rollingdam. However, Kennedy said in an interview with The Courier it isn’t clear how a truck larger than the bay allowed was purchased.
“I do know that once that was identified as a problem it was important we come together and work toward a solution,” Kennedy said. “As I said, we’re pretty optimistic we can do that. Obviously, this is a need, not a want.”
Kennedy believes the solution is on the table.
Public Safety Minister Robert Gauvin said he wanted to see for themselves the issues the fire department is facing when it comes to their new truck.
“Great people here, they do a good job,” Gauvin said. “What I enjoy, especially coming to places like this, when people ask for something they don’t ask for more than they need.”
He said everything that was asked for is very responsible and the government plans to respond.
Both Kennedy and Gauvin said Bockus was critical in getting them all together to hear the concerns of those working in Rollingdam.
“This is not about political colours, this about safety,” Gauvin said.
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