Town of Bonnyville, BRFA say Emergency Preparedness BBQ sucessful

While eating hot dogs and burgers participants got the chance to learn what you can do to be prepared for emergencies. Regional Fire Chief Dan Heney says the national theme this year is know your risks.  

“If you have a beautiful house in the country surrounded by trees, know the risks. If you live in a low property by the river, know those risks. We wanted to highlight that.” 

Heney says a preparedness kit should give the people 72 hours of sustainability to give first responders a chance to help everyone. Food, water, a can opener, and a flashlight are things recommended to be inside a kit among others. The list of items that should be included and how to build a kit can be found here. 

While at the BBQ Heney says he answered a few questions repeatedly including clarifying what are the risks in the M.D. of Bonnyville. 

“We don’t have some of the big risks that some of the other communities deal with. We are not like Fort McMurry which is carved out of the bush and surrounded by trees, Bonnyville isn’t. A fast-moving forest fire will not threaten the town. We could have a grass fire enter the town but those are relatively easy to deal with.” 

Heney also pointed to the town no longer having a rail line so train derailments are not an issue.

“Weather is a big risk with tornados being a big one. We could have winds, a six-foot dump of snow, or even the heat dome we are expecting this weekend.” 

Overall, Heney says it went really well. The BBQ was put on by a combination of the BRFA, Town of Bonnyville, and the FCSS as a department of the Town of Bonnyville. 

“We had FCSS staff helping out and town staff helping out, we had volunteers there. it was a really good team effort. Everyone pulled together and pulled off a great event.”