Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

KIVALLIQ (Sep 22/99) - Volunteer firefighters in Arviat and Baker Lake have a new weapon to help keep their communities safe with the delivery of two brand-new fire trucks to the hamlets.

Kivalliq regional fire marshal Tim Hinds says the trucks were purchased through the Nunavut Federal Infrastructure Purchasing program.

He says the federal government dedicated funds in the program to improve Nunavut's infrastructure when it became an official territory on April 1.

The new trucks are Freightliner four-door, crew cabs with a crew capability of six.

They can carry 3,780 litres of water and 170 litres of foam, with a 3,969 litre-per-minute pumping ability.

"The initial cost is $235,000 per vehicle and additional equipment, such as the firefighters' bunker gear, hoses, nozzles, breathing apparatus, etc., cost another $50,000 combined," says Hinds.

"There is another cost of $10,000 combined for proper training for the two communities and the Nunavut government is paying for that."

The training will be provided by Jamie Kines of the Fort Garry Company, which supplied the two Freightliner trucks.

Hinds says Kines will be conducting 40 hours of training in each community -- divided into three segments.

Hamlet senior administrative officers, foremen and mechanics will be trained on topics such as warranties, maintenance schedules and manuals during day one training, while water truck drivers, firefighters and mechanics will be trained on preventive maintenance and trouble shooting on day two.

Days three through five will see firefighters and water truck drivers trained on operations of all systems and equipment.

"The reason Arviat and Baker Lake received these vehicles is that, looking at the size of the communities and their projected growth, these vehicles were needed to help ensure community safety with the population and building growth that's expected.

"There were actually seven fire trucks purchased under this program. Arviat and Baker were the two Kivalliq communities which benefited from it."

Arviat fire Chief Paul Mikiyungiak says his firefighters are extremely happy to receive their new truck.

He says the new vehicle will greatly enhance his department's ability to protect its community.

"Our community is growing and it's expected to grow quickly during the next few years," says Mikiyungiak.

"The new truck is a welcome addition to help us properly service our community and all the men were really looking forward to the trainingsessions on the new truck."