This past month your fire department has been dispatched to nine emergencies:
- On August 21 at 4:28 am a call came in of alarms ringing at a Bentley residence. Nine members responded to what turned out to be a false alarm.
- On the night of August 31 thirteen members responded to a vehicle fire on Aspelund Road, just west of Woody Nook Road. The car started smoking while in motion and was brought safely to the shoulder by the driver, who evacuated through the window as the door lock mechanism was by now not functioning. Firefighters worked for some time to extinguish the flames and quite a bit of foam was used to do so. The driver was shaken up but fortunately not injured.
- In the late evening on August 31 firefighters were called to an accident on Highway 12 and RR 1-1. A car driving westbound toward Bentley shot off the road and into a thick treed shelter belt. The vehicle was impossible to see from the road and upon closer inspection it was noted that the driver had self-extricated. With help from Lacombe Fire Department a search was conducted but no one was found. A tow truck was called to remove the embedded vehicle from the property.
- On September 1st members responded to an outside fire north of Aspelund Road on RR 1-1. Nine crews worked to contain a stubble fire which had apparently been started by hot machinery working the field. It was soon safely extinguished.
- A call on September 7 directed firefighters to Gull Lake where a watercraft was in distress near Meridian Beach. Alberta Parks were alerted so their rescue boat could be utilize, just as it was launched we were informed that a Good Samaritan had seen their plight and was towing them in. The two people on board had been unsuccessful in getting the motor to start.
- Shortly after suppertime on September 10 crews raced to a rural residence where a youngster had been struck by debris ejected by a lawnmower. A STARS landing zone setup had been requested but upon arrival it was established travel by ambulance was sufficient. The child was later transported by air ambulance to Calgary and was thankfully doing much better by the next day.
- On September 15 seven members attended the scene of a vehicle fire on Twp Rd 41-0, west of Bentley. A truck reported stolen had been set on fire and abandoned near a well site. Firefighters put out the smoking remains so it could be safely towed off the property.
- At 4:28 pm on September 18 crews were sent to a business in Bentley where a natural gas line had been compromised. ATCO Gas crews were on site to fix the issue and firefighters stood by ready to contain issues if they arose. Fortunately the process was completed without further incident.
- And on September 21 at about 11 am a call was received of a two-vehicle accident at the intersection of Highway #12 and RR 28-2. A fully loaded gravel truck and pup trailer heading west on the highway had collided with a pickup truck and empty trailer which had been attempting to cross it. A safe working area around the scene was set up and traffic had to be carefully managed while the two drivers were attended to. No life-threatening injuries were sustained although EMS carefully assessed and advised them. Firefighters then cleaned up the highway so traffic flow could be restored.
