Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

Rankin Inlet (Oct 05/05) - A total of 14 Kivalliq volunteer firefighters participated in a Level Two training course in Rankin Inlet this past week.

A Resolute Bay firefighter also attended the program.

The course was the second Level Two program held in Nunavut, and plans are in the works to hold one more before the end of the government's fiscal year.

Don Corbett is the assistant fire marshal with Nunavut's Office of the Fire Marshal.

Corbett said Level Two training is designed as a journeyman's course.

He said the 80-hour program in Rankin boasted a 90 per cent success rate.

"We introduced the men to command and control during the program which is, basically, how to command a fire scene," said Corbett. "This is a significant step up from Level One training."

The course was a combination of classroom and practical training, with the volunteers tested on each of the 11 lessons, plus given two written and one practical exam to complete the program.

Corbett said the next step in improving the skill level of Nunavut's firefighting ranks is to introduce fire officer and emergency-services-instructor training.

"I want to start hand-picking people I see doing very well with their training throughout the territory for the instructor's course next year.

"That will enable us to start having Inuit instructors teaching in their own language, as well as bringing their culture into the program.

"After that, we'll start the officer training, which is more administrative in nature."

Corbett said the 15 firefighters who attended the Level Two course in Rankin performed far beyond what was expected of them.

Gave it their all

He said every participant gave 110 per cent throughout their training.

"We had guys in Level One training who didn't live up the expectations of the course curriculum and, unfortunately, had to be sent back to their communities because they didn't want to play the game.

"But they were, by far, the minority.

"Of the 139 volunteer firefighters we had attend Level One training in Rankin, Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay, 119 successfully completed the curriculum.

"The guys who came back for Level Two are very serious about what they do."