ESTEVAN - Estevan fire crews received numerous calls for service at the end of last week.
Friday afternoon the Estevan Fire Rescue Service responded to a report of a commercial fire alarm going off in a property on the southeast side of the city. With no visible signs of a fire, crews entered the building to find that the alarm system was malfunctioning and no emergency was occurring.
A significant call came in on Saturday at about 3 a.m. Firefighters were called out to a field fire. The report stated that farm equipment was also involved.
“Crews did arrive on scene to find that a tractor was fully engulfed as well as a portion of the field, and threatening some nearby haystacks and bales,” said Estevan Fire Chief Dale Feser.
“Crews were able to quickly bring the fire under control and suppress it without incident. At this time, the cause of the fire is still under investigation.”
At approximately 8 p.m. on Saturday evening, firefighters were called to a two-vehicle collision at an intersection on the east side of Estevan. There were no injuries. Firefighters provided traffic control and returned both vehicles to zero energy. Then the scene was turned over to the Estevan police for further investigation.
On Sunday at about 4:30 p.m., firefighters responded to another motor vehicle collision that occurred on Highway 39, at the Roche Percee access road.
“Initial report said that there were injuries. Crews arrived on scene to find a rather large debris field with no access in either direction. So traffic control was established immediately with RCMP services. The injured individual was treated and released on scene, as he did not require any further treatment. The vehicles were returned to zero energy. The debris field on the highway was cleaned up and then the scene was turned back over to the RCMP to continue to investigate the cause of the collision,” Feser explained.
At about 9 p.m. on Sunday, firefighters also responded to a carbon monoxide (CO) alarm that went off in a building located in the northeast area of Estevan.
“Crews arrived on scene to find that the detection device was reading around 60 parts per million in the home. We went inside with our detection equipment and picked upwards of 70 parts per million. SaskEnergy attended the scene to assist,” Feser said.
The crews were able to ventilate the home and return it to normal levels. The further investigation determined that it was possibly a collapsed venting for the water heater that created a downdraft situation, setting off the CO alarm.
“Always make sure that you have a working carbon monoxide alarm in the home. You don't know when these things are going to occur and as soon as they go off, you need to observe. And if there is a possible emergency situation occurring, call 911 and get out quickly,” Feser advised.
Fire crews of three were also out at the Estevan Motor Speedway Saturday and Sunday, fulfilling their race duties.
