Dave Sullivan
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (July 13/01) - Driving through a park where workers are clearing bush, Dave Gargan suddenly stops when he sees one of his employees using a heavy duty whipper snipper without all the safety gear.

Firefighting supervisor Dave Gargan spends a lot of time ensuring workers are safe. - Dave Sullivan/NNSL photo

The young man looks up after sensing being stared at, and Gargan keeps staring until the man shuts off the machine.

Gargan makes a hand motion to his head, as though he were tipping a cap.

"Awww, do I have to wear that?" the man whines.

Still without using words, Gargan just waits while the man dons a hardhat and face screen.

"The supervisor down here should have been looking at that," he finally says while driving away.

Despite that, Gargan thinks a lot of his supervisors and the rest of the team. They are his firefighting crew. With the fire hazard recently going from extreme to moderate in the Fort Simpson district, the crew takes on odd jobs for the territorial government.

The government is, after all, footing the $500,000 cost of firefighting services in the area, contracted to Gargan's employer Nogha Enterprises. The company is owned by the Liidlii Kue First Nation.

In his quiet way Gargan certainly knows about safety in the bush, especially during a forest fire. He's been fighting fire for two decades, facing down between 1,500 and 2,000 blazes.

He still does that, but not as often now because of the growing confidence he has in the abilities of the 22-man crew.

He says the emphasis he's placed on training is bearing fruit, resulting in an experienced team that works well together.

"Sometimes that's hard to do because they need to be certified, and in order to do that they have to go on three fires." Because of turnover, many don't even make it to three fires.

"That makes it hard to run the company."

There was one woman, but she's on maternity leave this summer. Gargan keeps an eye out for potential candidates.

"I'm looking for young blood and get them up to snuff, so they can move up."

Many crew members trap in winter, something Gargan may get back into. He had stopped because of low fur prices, but he's noticed better prices over the past couple years.