SCOTT GERMAIN

Fort Mcmurray firefighter

I was basically by myself in charge of procurement. We needed fuel, water trucks, dozers to make firebreaks. The strangest request was KY Jelly and a turkey baster. I said, ‘I don’t have time for your jokes!’ I guess they needed the KY for the thermometers for the pets and the turkey basters to feed them. But the biggest priority was feeding the firemen. That first evening was all about getting them food to eat because everything was closed. We got permission to enter a” Safeway and literally just wiped things off the shelves with our arms.

Age: 29 Years of service: 10 Days fighting the Beast: 13

Scott Germain and his twin brother, Jamie, started volunteering for the fire department in their nearby hometown as teenagers, following in the footsteps of their father, older brother, cousins, and uncles. But nothing could prepare them for the Beast. “It was so crazy that we actually thought the whole city would burn down,” recalls Scott. His crew had one basic order: save as many houses as possible. And they did, driving from block to block in Beacon Hill, retreating only when the flames got too close for comfort. Behind the black plumes sat his house — out of reach and likely gone. But Scott didn’t shed a tear until the next day, when he saw a photo floating around on Facebook of Jamie, in uniform, hosing down whatever was left of his twin’s house, refusing to give up.

Michael Powlesland Chief of logistics