The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

BB NEWS RESIDENTS, OFFICIALS SOUNDING ALARM AFTER RASH OF GRASS FIRES | FIREFIGHTERS TO MEET WITH CN ABOUT THEIR CONCERNS DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com A recent rash of grass fires along the region's rail corridor — which includes Oakville Jan has mcerns among of- fells and residents. Numerous fires broke out at multiple locations beside the CN rail line on April 11, and again on April 20 — with firefighters called in from across the region, including Oakville, is well as neighbouring Hamilton. The Burlington Fire De- partment -— which had to deploy virtually all of its resources to combat these recent fires — has reached out to CN Rail to discuss the issue. Milton Fire and Rescue another grass fire along the same rail corridor in the vicinity of Tremai Road and Lower Baseline on April 21. ‘These fires are believed ing into contact with dry grass. "Grass fires around rail lines happen from time to e recent fires have been ore than normal." town of Milton spokes- person Rob Faulkner said that while most of these fires are minor, there is the potential for significant fires to develop, depending n the dryness of vegeta- tion in the area. Dan McTeague, who re- sides near the Tremaine Road rail crossing, says he witnessed one of the April 20 blazes ignite. “I happened to be doing some work outside and a train went by. It was a shorter train. Not one of the longer ones. I didn't re- ally pay any attention to it and fen a little while ater e saw smoke," he said. " blew toward the west ... ‘ite concerning that somethii like that was so close." McTeague said this isn't ie fest time he's seen a fire near these tracks, noting one took place last summer. In an April 24 state- ment, CN Media Relations Advisor Julien Bedard said CN and the local fire departments responded to res near CN tracks in Hal- everal occasions over ‘the past two weeks. sponders, attended to sev- eral incidents of fire and successfully contained “The neighbours all agree, there will be more fires." - Sal Paccione them," said Bedard. "The investigation on the cause of the fires remains ongo- ing." While no one was in- jured and no structures were damaged in any of the recent grass fires, Burling- ton Deputy Fire Chief John Pawlik said the April 20 fire spread fast enough to threaten a horse farm in the Hwy. 407 and Tremaine Road area before being ex- tinguished. He also said two fire- fighters received work-re- lated strains as a result of the physically taxing la- bour involved in combat- ing the grass fires, which were often nowhere near hydrants and therefore re- quired fire crews to haul hoses long distances and utilize modified ATVs and other firefighting meth- s. Sal Paccione, who lives afew hundred metres away from the rail crossing in the Tremaine and No. 1 Si- deroad area, had a front- rowseat to the April 20fire. He said fires along the tracks are a recurring is- sue and noted something needs to change before someone gets hurt. "One we're going to roll s Paocione said he has seen several grass fires near the tracks over the years, but the frequency of these seems to be increas- ing. He ae he would like to see CN purchase more equipment “that could be used to quickly extinguish these fires from the tracks. Paccione said in the past he has also seen a rail grinder smoothing imper- fections off this section of tracks and showering the immediate area with sparks as it passed. When asked if a rail grinder was being used pri- or to the most recent series of grass fires, Bedard said the investigation was still ongoing and declined to mment. Bedard said safety is a core value at CN and dur- ing the wildfire season the company strictly follows gulations and protocols for operating in dry condi- Hons. said this includes, uti is snot limited to: «Inspecting locomotives and other rail car equip: ment for mechanical i: es. * Reviewing data fro! elect inspection equipment that monitors trains for potential me- chanical problems that could te yead to sparks. faking sure work crews in the field are equipped with fire sup- pression equipment. « Having field employ- ees monit nitor trains as they pass looking for any issues that could spark a fire. aring vegetation along the one CN right of way to minimize the risk of fire. “Moreover, we are in- creasing patrols that pre- cede and follow trains to inspect for any potential is- sues on the track ahead and for any sign of fire af- ter train passage," said Be- dal with fire sup- pression equipment.” Reaction to the fires is mixed among area resi- dents. £202 ‘LL Aew ‘Aepsiny, | Jeaeeg emlxeo | LZ, Graham Paine/Metroland file hit Firefighters use an ATV to look for hotspots after getting a large &rass fire under control in 2020. le McTeague said seeing the April 20 fire was rning he doesn't be- lieve. there is any real threat to his property. Paccione, on the other hand, is worried enough to have reached out to CN — calling for some kind of so- =z ition. "T'm living under fear of imminent fires," he said. “The neighbours all agree, ere will be more fires." Roche said her depart- ment has reached out to CN to work outa time when they can discuss these re re- cent events with th gional fire chiefs and move forward on a prevention plan. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: In the wake of recent grass fires along Halton’ ‘s rail cori we fed to examine tI acai this has raised, as well as what's being done to address the issue. FIRE PREVENTION INFO SESSION SET The Oakville Fire De- partment will hold a fire prevention information ses- sion for homeowners and renters on Thursday, May , The free in-person event will take place at the Halton Multicultural Council at 11 a Lm. Landlords and tenant will have the opportunity to learn about the legislated responsibilities each have smoke and car- bon monoxide alarms. Additional _ discussion bacaeet will include home es- ord Deooking safety. virtual session will be heldat6 p.m. on Wednesday, Interested attendees can register by emailing hal- masri@hmcconnec- tions.com. Organizers say these ses- sions are being hosted in partnership with th thet Halton Multicultural C sponse to a rising oureena of fire incidents and fatalities seen across the province and in Oakville, specifically in rental accommodations including basement apart- ments. The sessions aim to ensure that residents are doing everything they can to prevent fires and keep themselves and their ones safe. According to recent data from Ontario's Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergen- cy Management, there were 188 fire fatalities in Ontario in 2022, the highest in two decades. In Oakville between Jan- uary to the end of April 2023, there were 46 structure fire incidents, ‘including one fa- talit vultur- The Halton Multic al Council is Tocated at 1092 § Speers Rd. woo uoyeuepsut