Protective Policing

Times Contributor  

 

Sgt. Jeff Cyr, Senior Peace Officer for Wheatland County brought the January call statistics to Wheatland Council on March 5, 2013.

The officers attended to 53 traffic issues, assisted RCMP with one Criminal offence, responded with EMS and Fire once, dealt with seven animal control issues and two environmental concerns, and worked on general reporting duties involving four bylaws.

Council had previously approved officers to attend the 2013 Alberta Association of Community Peace Officers (AACPO) Conference. Cyr reported that there were multiple sessions and seminars on officer safety and duties. There were special speakers from the RCMP dealing with correct handling of exhibits and monitoring terrorist activity in rural areas. The SPCA speaker gave information on coordination with the agency and animal safety. The officers also got to network and vote for their executive officers.

“The conference was a real learning opportunity,” said Cyr, and thanked Council for the opportunity to attend.

Fire guardians reappointed 

Council reappointed local fire guardians, with the addition of Curt Emde and Ryan Hauswirth for the Carseland region. Fire Guardians issue fire permits under the Alberta Forest Prairie Protection Act, and can be reached any day of the week between 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Forms are picked up from the County of Wheatland office during business hours. Fire guardians were put in place in each area to better monitor Wheatland County and to make it easier for residents to get their permits signed. All the guardians are given training to assess conditions and fire risks in their respective areas. Councillors wanted to stress that guardians do accept some of the risk for the fires they authorize through the permit process. See sidebar for contact number.

Uninsured fire bill

Standard Fire will be glad to hear that Council approved adding the uncollected bill for the uninsured fire to the landowner’s tax roll. Letters will be sent to Standard Fire and the landowner indicating the action will take place if the bill is not paid. Councillor Ken Sauve researched various insurance companies for landowner fire insurance and found that property coverage premiums ranged between no extra money for landowner fire insurance to up to an additional $6,000 per year, depending on coverage needed. He said adequate coverage is out there and encouraged everyone to review their policy for fire inclusion. Council also discussed whether accessing additional emergency equipment and billing for non-insured properties could be added to discussions with fire services in the County.

Resolution postponed 

The Fire Review Committee asked council to consider extending their mandate as a facilitator beyond the Fire Services Review, keeping a board in place to deal with any future fire issues between the various county fire services and Wheatland County.

Councillors felt that the committee could not present an unbiased position, due to the fact many of the members were also serving on area Fire Associations or departments. They clarified that the committee was developed for the specific task of facilitating the Fire Review and the guidelines stipulate that the Board will step down after that review is completed. It was also noted that the Strathmore Fire Department was not involved in the present committee. Council felt it would be better to wait for the review completion and the matter could be referred to the Wheatland Regional Fire Partnership at that time.