The southwestern part of Mountain View County will soon have improved water and ice rescue capability after the Cremona Fire Department secured $10,000 in funding from county council for equipment purchases.With specialized equipment currently located only in Sundre, filling the gap was flagged as a priority by the department, Greg Harris, chairman of the Cremona and District Emergency Services Authority, told council at its Nov. 16 meeting.ìEssentially we've identified the need for water and ice rescue capability,î Harris said. Currently the department does not have that, except for a rope with a weight attached to it.îHarris asked council to approve the funds in advance of the 2012 budget so that the department could be trained and ready for ice rescue this winter and water rescue in the spring and summer.ìWe're asking for a head start so we can get this program up and running,î he said.The equipment will include emergency suits, ropes, lines, an inflatable craft such as a Zodiac with a small motor, and ice ladders.As well as speeding up response times for Winchell Lake and the many other water bodies in the immediate area, the added capability will also support the Carstairs and Didsbury departments, he said. Currently the nearest rescue team for those communities is based in Crossfield.Statistics show that the second largest cause of death of children on farms is drowning, Harris pointed out.ìThere have been resuscitations of children 20, 30 minutes after immersion in water. It's a very time-sensitive emergency call. We have a window, particularly with children. Children are drawn to water bodies. They're drawn to the feel and sound of water and it's a very dangerous location.îThe expense would not be cost-shared with the Village of Cremona, he said, because ìwe see it primarily as a rural issue, not something that's going to happen in the village itself Ö Almost all, 100 per cent of the calls would be rural related.îDiv. 2 Coun. Trish McKean's motion to approve the funding was passed unanimously.Speaking in support of the motion, Div. 1 Coun. Kevin Good said: ìI can't think of any scenario other than that our ratepayers need this service. I would like to get the ball rolling as quickly as possible.î
