Fear tactics from first responders

It’s unfortunate that volunteer first responders and firefighters have created a fear mentality in the Balgonie townspeople.

They who should be taking a step back and saying ‘We will figure out an emergency preparedness plan,’ but instead have said:

‘We can’t evacuate if a train derailment occurs’; ‘Remember Lac Megantic’ (43 people killed and a town destroyed: evacuation was not even an option).

They have created scenarios.

If a train carrying dangerous goods collides with a semi on the tracks carrying dangerous goods, how will we evacuate?

In actuality, only nine per cent of dangerous goods are transported by railways.

They say heart attack patients will die. Accident victims won’t get helped in time.

Total fear tactics.

There are volunteer first responders and volunteer fire departments in McLean, White City, Pilot Butte that can and will respond.

It’s no different if one is on a call and another call comes in.

We look to first responders to help during our weakest moments, so when scenarios of doom are told to the community, it creates fear.

This is NOT the responsible role of someone the community relies on during a crisis.

The responsible role would be to work with what is being offered by the Department of Highways. Wanda Campbell, Pilot Butte Campbell’s son, Lane Antosh, was killed in a collision on the TransCanada Highway east of Regina in 2013.