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Vegreville News Advertiser - Fire Prevention Week Feature
Two Hills Firefighter Always Ready to Answer the Call
Michelle Pinon News Advertiser
Two Hills firefighter Jake Fehr has been answering the call of duty for the past 13 years and is still enjoying all of the challenges that goes along with the job. His wife Annie smiles and says more often than not those calls come when they are sitting down to dinner or during the middle of the night when they are sleeping. Since Jake works in the Town of Two
Hills, he responds to daytime and nighttime emergencies, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
On average, Jake says the Two Hills Fire Department responds to 35 calls a year. This year he started tracking the locations and types of incidents on a County of Two Hills map in the fire hall.
Looking back, Captain Fehr recalls how he first got involved with firefighting. “I guess it started with my Uncle
Dave who was on the Hairy Hill Fire Department. He asked me to pick up his gear one day and bring it to him at the fire hall, and then the guys on the department started bugging me to join. I tried it and I like it.”
Jake was 17-years-old at the time. He served with the Hairy Hill Fire Department from 2010 to 2015. He joined the Two Hills Fire Department in 2014. “For a while I was on both departments because I worked in town.”
He admits to being competitive and always wanting to improve and learn new things. Jake has always had a willingness to take on more duties and responsibilities. His advice, “Train hard. You can never learn enough.”
One training course that he thoroughly enjoyed was an ice rescue course on Jackfish Lake. Jake said an instructor came out from Banff to conduct the two day course as they learned to identify what safe ice is and utilized ropes throughout the training session.
Jake says that over the past couple of years there’s been a rise in demand for river rescues. The fire department now has a Zodiac inflatable boat that will be used in those types of scenarios and he is excited about future training opportunities on the North Saskatchewan River. “I’m looking forward to becoming more familiar with water rescue and getting to know the river. It’s a dangerous place. There’s lots to learn.”
He likes to be involved in the community, and has fond memories of participating in the fun-filled Rubber Boot Games on Canada Day. “I really enjoy the social aspect of it.” He also recalled helping out a couple of new residents to the community. “This summer we had a couple that were in an accident and were banged up pretty good. They had just moved here. So, for practice we went and unloaded their trailer.”
Helping others is what seems to come naturally for Jake and his fellow firefighters. As far as advice, Jake says, “Come join. We need you.”
