The Waswanipi Fire Department won the 15th Annual Provincial Aboriginal Firefighters’ competitions three weeks prior to the National competitions; the provincial competitions were hosted in Waswanipi on August 28.
At these competitions it came out to be very competitive and Waswanipi, Nemaska and Manawan held a three-way tie for first place and the rules stated that the team with the least penalties out of all the evolutions comes out the winner.
For the past three years the Cree Nation has been competing extremely well in the Provincial Aboriginal firefighters’ Competitions. Standings for the last three years at the provincials are:
2002 – 1st Manawan, 2nd Waskaganish, 3rd Nemaska and Waswanipi ties
2003 – 1st Manawan, 2nd Nemaska, 3rd Waskaganish and Waswanipi ties.
2004 – 1st Waswanipi, 2nd Nemaska, 3rd Manawan
The 2004 National Aboriginal Firefighters’ competitions was held in Chehalis First Nation, British Columbia, this past month of September with teams from across the country coming together to challenge and share their skills and techniques. The week began with a two-day National Fire Safety Conference and on Saturday morning the competition commenced. There were 4 evolutions in all, Fast Coupling Drill, Replace a burst length (hose), S.C.B.A relay and Hose rolling was the final evolution. The Waswanipi Fire Department places third at the national level with 310 points, behind Ontario with 320 points and Manitoba with 340 points. These competitions were very close to the end.
The Waswanipi Fire Department would like to congratulate all the Fire Departments that participated. Keep up with the hard work and dedication towards your communities.
For more info go to waswanipifd.com.
