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Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services Office of the Fire Marshal |
Ministère de la Sécurité
communautaire et des Services correctionnels |
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Place Nouveau Building 7th Floor 5775 Yonge Street North York ON M2M 4J1 Telephone 416-325-3100 Facsimile: 416-325-3162 |
Édifice Place Nouveau |
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For Immediate Release
Attention News & Assignment Editors
Gananoque (September 27, 2007) –
At an annual program exercise today, the provincial CBRNE (chemical, biological,
radiation, nuclear and explosives) teams demonstrated their abilities to
maintain provincial public safety and reduce property loss in any Ontario
community, in the event of an actual CBRNE/Hazardous Materials provincial
emergency.
“It is beyond the capability of most communities in Ontario to individually
purchase and maintain equipment, then fund the ongoing training necessary to
respond to CBRNE incidents,” said Doug Crawford, Deputy Fire Marshal. “This is
why after 9/11, the Office of the Fire Marshal (OFM) helped to establish a
comprehensive response system for the province of Ontario in which provincial
and municipal resources could be deployed to support these communities.”
In the early morning hours, CBRNE teams from Peterborough and Ottawa were
successfully notified and deployed to mitigate a jack-knifed tractor-trailer and
its overturned cargo of three chlorine cylinders at a popular Gananoque
intersection. As the team worked to contain the chlorine, they were met
with constant interactions of about 50 local high school students who dramatized
situational scenarios such as breathing problems, and mobility issues. It was
all part of the important training with realistic scenarios that CBRNE teams
have come to expect and be evaluated on.
“The exercise was an excellent learning opportunity for the CBRNE teams and for
assessing the level of provincial emergency preparedness as it pertains to
hazardous materials,” said Carol-Lynn Chambers, OFM Operations Manager/Chief of
Emergency Planning and Strategic Development. “Through partnerships with the
mutual aid system, municipalities and multiple emergency response organizations,
it’s exercises like this one that help us to make changes, solve problems,
collaborate on issues and adequately anticipate future provincial and municipal
needs.”
Depending on the level of emergency response needed within the province, the OFM
coordinates nine hazardous materials teams who operate at different levels.
Strategically located throughout the province, all teams can be notified and
deployed 24/7 through the Provincial Emergency Operation Centre.
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For more information or to request an interview with the Deputy
Fire Marshal, please contact:
Carol Gravelle, Office of the Fire Marshal, 416-325-3138
Bev Gilbert, Office of the Fire Marshal, 416-325-3178
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