You could see the smoke as soon as you came over the hill, just outside of White Bear. It was billowing from somewhere in Carlyle, black and menacing. It did not look good, and it would be easy to find the source. It was just to the south of the town, on the east side of Hwy.9. Getting closer you could make out the flames, bright orange-red, flashing through the smoke. There was a house in there, its frame exposed as a skeleton in death. A sinking feeling came to the stomach, "Dear God, don't let there be anyone in there."
There were several fire engines in attendance. Firefighters were obvious in their yellow protective suits. They were watching the flames, some of them were talking around a truck, but there was something wrong. The mind struggled to take in the scene, where were the police? Why was there no traffic control on the busy highway? Why were the firefighters taking it easy? The answer lies in the fact that this was a controlled burn. This was a deliberate burning of a property donated to the fire department for practice. It could easily have been real, as real as it gets.
On the infamous 9-11, almost a decade ago, everyone knew of the heroic actions of the New York Fire Department, but such celebrity rarely comes to the men and women of the fire service. They are the unsung heroes of most towns, often risking their life to save others, giving of their time and energy and commitment to be ready to spring into action where the brave dare not go.
While the natural reaction of most people is to turn and flee in the face of a serious fire, the men and women of Carlyle Fire Department know they must overcome that tendency, walking into the danger with their fears in check, and their much-practised skill and teamwork in place. It is an incredibly brave and selfless thing to do, and most of us take it for granted.
Why do they do it? It's certainly not for the money, most volunteer firefighters are lucky to add an extra $1200 to their annual income, and tax comes off that. Is it for the fame and accolades? No, we rarely praise or even recognise them for the work they do. The motivation lies far deeper; it's an inner sense of obligation, a moral centre of service orientation, something that propels them to put their life on the line simply to help other people, knowing they might be the ones who need help on some future occasion.
There are no career firefighters at Carlyle, they are all volunteers. They have other jobs, other interests, families, hobbies. They have a life outside of the service, and yet they will put that life on hold at a moment's notice to answer the call to help a fellow human being. There are less than 20 members in the Carlyle department, contracted by the R.M. and the Town, they serve not only the immediate area, but also have agreements in place to offer assistance to other departments as far afield as Kipling and Manor.
While the department will attend grass fires, structural fires and gas leaks, around 75% of their calls relate to motor vehicle collisions. They can be hard, very hard. The sights that greet these brave people are not for the faint-hearted, and sometimes very hard to erase from the mind. Yet still, they go, into the most terrible human tragedies, into the smoke, sometimes into the flames.
They work with little compensation, they work with limited budgets, and they work with supreme dedication. They are true heroes, but they need more people. They're urgently in need of three or four local volunteers to step up to the plate and join them. If you are willing to answer this call, please get in touch with Rob Klassen at 461-5410
