The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Fires and other disasters destroyed some $650,000 worth of property in Flin Flon last year, notes the Annual Fire Report for 2003. While that amount is the accumulation of 73 calls to the fire department, the majority of the monetary damage Ñ $450,000 Ñ resulted from just two incidents. The most expensive incident resulted in an estimated $250,000 in damages to McIsaac School Ecole McIsaac in July, when a bottle thrown through a window caused science lab chemicals to mix and start a fire. About $200,000 worth of property was lost in December when flames consumed a home at White Fish Lake. Other major incidents throughout the year included a fuel truck rollover on Longmore Avenue in March (about $100,000 in damage); a vehicle fire on Wally Heights in January ($20,000); and a basement fire on South Main Street in January ($7,000). Two kitchen fires, one on Scarth Street in January and one on Hapnot Street in July, each resulted in about $5,000 of damage. Total monetary losses in 2003 were down by about $1.4 million over 2002, the year the Hemlock Drive seniors apartments met a fiery fate. With 73 calls last year, the total number of calls was down by three over 2002. False alarms continued to account for more than a quarter of all calls. Last year, 27 per cent of calls turned out to be false alarms. However, that is a substantial decrease over 1999, when 49 per cent of the calls were false alarms. Outside of their regular duties, firefighters organized several special events throughout the year, including: September's Boot Drive fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, which raised $5,882 in donations from the public. The open house at the fire hall in June, which was another success, attracting approximately 90 children and 50 adults. The 1st Annual Beat the Chief competition, which pitted the firefighters against their chief in an endurance challenge, was held in June.
