Residents in Foothills County are expressing considerations over water entry of their group southwest of Calgary after a house was engulfed in flames Wednesday.
Crews have been known as to the house off Freeway 762 close to 242 Ave W in Foothills County shortly after 4 o’clock; no accidents have been reported however the house is an entire loss.
Nevertheless, close by residents are satisfied hearth crews encountered points when 4 engines travelled to a close-by bulk fill station to replenish their water tanks with a excessive velocity pump.
That pump sits behind a fence put in final yr, in line with Mary Anne Desmeules, who lives close by.
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“They had to use the typical bulk fill that residents use for their own water.”
Desmeules stated it ought to solely take as much as 5 minutes to fill a truck with the excessive velocity pump, however she stated it was taking “20 minutes each” to refill with the majority fill pump.
“It was super sad and frustrating, I felt so sorry for the firemen because they were all great guys here that were trying their best.”
Close by residents in Foothills County are satisfied hearth crews encountered points throughout their response associated to water entry points within the space. World Information
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In an announcement, Foothills County hearth chief Russ Friesen stated an ample and constant water provide was out there to fireside crews as they labored to include this fireplace and defend surrounding properties.
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However residents really feel Wednesday’s hearth is one other instance of the rising considerations round water entry in the neighborhood, south of Bragg Creek.
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There aren’t any hearth hydrants within the space, and most of the close by properties depend on the majority fill station or wells to attract their consuming water.
“There’s people who are really scared and concerned that if something did happen, that there’d be no way of stopping the fire,” stated Russell Walker, who additionally lives close by.
“We’re really surrounded by a lot of old growth forest.”
Walker and Desmeules are amongst a gaggle of residents who’ve fashioned a committee pushing for improved and extra everlasting water infrastructure within the space.
“We’re in a drought situation,” Desmeules stated. “Wells are going dry out here, people who had reliable water are concerned because their wells are going dry.”
The group is on the lookout for the county to construct a water pipeline to service surrounding residents, after a 2018 examine right into a extra everlasting system all the best way to Priddis.
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“We want the water, we just don’t want to pay an exponential amount for it when there’s other people in the county that are paying far less for it,” Walker stated. “We just want a feasible plan.”
The group plans to satisfy with Banff-Kananaskis NDP MLA Sarah Elmeligi within the coming weeks, within the hopes of furthering conversations about water infrastructure in the neighborhood.
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