The Iron River Fire Hall will have its doors open on Saturday. The fire department is hoping for a good turn out as it hosts an open house and workshop. The talks will begin in the morning and touch on the FireSmart program.
Iron River Fire Chief Gordon Graves says the FireSmart program is a way that residents can help to make sure a wildfire doesn’t get out of control.
“It’s actually been proven. If you do everything in your yard right you can lessen, not negate, but lessen the damage that can be done in your yard in the event of a wildfire.”
A barbecue lunch at noon will then be followed by special guest Brad Andres from Alberta Agriculture. Andres will present a talk on keeping livestock and pets safe during an emergency evacuation.
Graves says the resume Andres has makes him an expert on how to respond to a chaotic scene when it comes to your animals.
“Brad has had the same position since the Slave Lake fire. He’s dealt with quite a few fires and evacuations. He dealt with the Calgary flood and evacuations.”
Graves says the talk will be do’s and don’ts on evacuating and leaving livestock behind, including how to check on your herd should your area be evacuated. The day is family friendly, with talks being aimed at kids as well. A few kid-friendly demonstrations, as well as a scavenger hunt with a prize, mean the day should appeal to all ages.
The fire hall opens its doors at 10 am and Graves expects the day to go until about 2:30 pm. The Iron River Fire Hall is located on Range Road 473 about 5 kilometres north of Highway 55.