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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Firefighters can't help but recall deadly 2007 tragedy

By: Melissa Martin

Posted: 12/17/2011 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

A shrine was set up to remember Capt. Thomas Nichols (left) and Capt. Harold Lessard after they died in a fire in 2007. (KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES)

Lessons learned

AT the time, they called the changes a "tribute" to the firefighters who had lost their lives.

In the wake of a 2007 blaze that killed Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service captains Harold Lessard and Tom Nichols, the province changed its building code to help make homes safer for occupants and emergency workers alike.

Beginning on Oct. 1, 2008, all new houses built in Manitoba are required to have a heat detector in their garages that is wired to the home's smoke-alarm system. Walls connecting attached garages to living spaces must be built with fire-resistant materials.

The recommendations in the report were estimated to add about $2,000 to the cost of newly constructed homes, including $250 for fire alarms and the rest for the cost of the fire-resistant drywall.

The code changes were not retroactive, so homeowners living in a house built before October 2008 must decide for themselves if they'd like to invest the money to renovate.

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BENEATH the black and smoky ashes of a Linden Woods home lay memories of a blaze that left far deeper scars.

Nearly five years ago, a similar fire claimed the lives of Winnipeg firefighters Capt. Harold Lessard and Capt. Tom Nichols, injured four other firefighters and sent the department into shock.

"It never leaves your mind," one firefighter said at Friday morning's scene on Shoreline Drive. He was also among the first to arrive at the tragic 2007 house fire in St. Boniface. "I still remember the day."

Both blazes started in the garage; both spread quickly to engulf multi-storey homes. But lessons learned from that fatal blaze, firefighters said, meant Friday's story did not have the same tragic ending.

The spacious house belonged to Edward Kennedy, chief executive officer of The North West Company. His 20-year-old daughter discovered the fire around 7:30 a.m. when she went to start her car.

The Kennedy family fled to a neighbour's house, and firefighters raced to the scene. When crews arrived, flames were burning freely through the roof of the garage and leaping high into the still-dark sky. After confirming no one was trapped inside, firefighters adopted a "defensive position" -- fighting the fire from the outside only and working to protect nearby properties.

By 8:45 a.m., only a charred skeleton of the house remained, with damage estimated at $3 million.

A representative from Kennedy's office said he would not be able to speak to the media on Friday. In a statement, North West Company chairman Sandy Riley said the company's operations would not be affected.

"We are thankful Edward, Stella and their children are all safe," Riley said.

For firefighters too, a thoughtful day: This one could have been worse. Following an investigation into the fire that killed Lessard and Nichols, Manitoba Workplace Health and Safety produced a report featuring recommendations to prevent further tragedies. One of the recommendations was that firefighters should no longer risk their lives to save property alone, by plunging into an unoccupied but burning building.

By all accounts, that advice was followed perfectly on Friday.

"What was very positive about this fire is that it was recognized very quickly for dangerousness of what was going on," said Alex Forrest, president of the United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg. "So it is a time to reflect on 2007, but it's also positive that we learned from that situation. That's what firefighters do. We rely on our experience -- and that experience we all felt in 2007 may have saved lives."

But as Forrest noted, firefighters still approach every fire ready to risk their lives, if there is a single life to be saved. "If there's someone inside the house, all rules are gone, because you send someone in no matter what," he said.

Also in response to the 2007 tragedy, the province in 2008 amended its building codes to require fire-resistant drywall between a house and an attached garage. Firefighters said it did not appear the Shoreline Drive house had fire-resistant drywall installed. Most homes in Linden Woods were built prior to the change in code.

melissa.martin@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 17, 2011 B1

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