Baie-Trinité must now rely solely on Baie-Comeau to intervene when there is an emergency call requiring the presence of firefighters on site.
The Municipality no longer met ministerial requirements to operate its service.
Having only two trained firefighters and one recruited firefighter, according to what the mayor explains, the closure was inevitable
“Of course we looked at the pros and cons, the costs and all possible avenues. Except that the situation today forces us to face the facts that we have no choice in making this decision,” replies Étienne Baillargeon.
The resolution stipulating the complete closure of the Baie-Trinité fire station and fire department was passed during the municipal meeting of November 13. “With the coverage scheme, the more things go, the more difficult the government requirements become,” explains the man who says he does not do this with joy of heart.
The reality of Baie-Trinité
Located halfway between Baie-Comeau and Port-Cartier, the two closest barracks, the municipality is grappling with a time issue.
It is more than an hour’s drive from each nearest service point. This is without counting the time it will take a complete team of firefighters to travel to Baie-Trinité.
As Baie-Trinité is located in the MRC of Manicouagan, it is Baie-Comeau which is responsible for covering the territory.
“I deplore that the standards do not take into account regional realities. We would have to be operational as if we were in a large city or as in large centers,” expresses Mr. Baillargeon.
More firefighters
The mayor specifies that Baie-Trinité should have at least six trained firefighters.
“I have nothing against it, I can understand the standards of the ministry, but it is very heavy to bear,” he said.
Currently, firefighters find themselves on technical break. “How are we going to find people and try to get the training done? » asks the mayor.
Despite requests from the population to become a volunteer firefighter, the latter indicates that “social involvement is not there”.
“It’s not from yesterday”
Citizen Roger Baudin deplores the situation. “It’s not new that we have problems with our service, our firefighters,” he declares.
He maintains that the Municipality would slow down solutions to get the barracks service back on its feet.
“We had appointed someone at the time, and I won’t say his name, who had somewhat taken the village out of guardianship. After that, he devoted his time to the fire service. […] But in short, they ended up throwing him out, because he was too enterprising,” the resident believes.
“That was the general manager and the mayor who did that,” he continues.
Two fires in the last two weeks have highlighted the problems of Baie-Trinité, according to the citizen.
Safety for all
“I raise the question, because I think about lives,” declares Roger Beaudin.
The latter is especially worried about the elderly. “We have a health center here and we don’t have a sponsor. If a fire breaks out at midnight at the health center, what do we do? »
“We need a solution in Baie-Trinité. We agree, we will not move the village,” he insists.
