61st Edition
April 2021
White Lake Named Fire Department of The Year
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CSRD Release A pandemic wasn’t going to stand in the way of the White Lake Fire Department. Instead, the department stepped up. The efforts of the White Lake Fire Department were acknowledged at the March 18 Columbia Shuswap Regional District Regular Board Meeting with the presentation of the Fire Department of the Year honours. During 2020, the White Lake Department increased the number of their members trained to exterior firefighting standards by 50 per cent. The White Lake firefighters also had very strong attendance at all the CSRD’s online Zoom training sessions. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the CSRD needed to temporarily replace in-person training at CSRD fire halls, although in-person training was recently resumed. In addition, members of the White Lake Fire Department contributed to regional efforts to train firefighters from
across the CSRD’s 13 fire departments. Fire Chief Bryan Griffin and Deputy Chief Lynn Mazur attended the meeting by Zoom to accept the award. “Thank you for the honour. It is a real privilege to be a part of this amazing group of firefighters,” he told the Directors, noting the department appreciates the support offered by CSRD Fire Services staff. Derek Sutherland, Team Leader of Protective Services, says the department’s commitment to the CSRD’s Fire Service values of community, teamwork, professionalism and integrity are exemplary. This was echoed by Electoral Area C Director Paul Demenok, who congratulated the department, noting how closely the department is woven into the fabric of the community as leading participants in community charity events and celebrations like Halloween. “You are doing a marvelous job out there. Keep up the good work,” added Demenok.
