How do you take an open field, create a tent city, fill it with thousands of scouts, leaders and organizers from across the country, and make it a safe and fun place to hold your Jamboree? Over the last year, that question has been the focus of George Coade, Fire and Safety Manager for the Canadian Jamboree 2001 being held at Cabot Provincial Park.
George has been entrusted with planning, staffing, and overseeing the emergency fire fighting contingencies for the 15,000 participants who are attending the 2001 jamboree. The demands of such an assignment would appear daunting to many, but George was selected because of his wealth of fire suppression and jamboree organization experience.
In his everyday life, George is the Central Forest District Supervisor for the Department of Agriculture and Forestry. Over the past 26 years, he has overseen most aspects of forest fire suppression and management. This has included managing staff resources, planning for fire emergencies, and fighting wild fires across PEI.
As well, this is his third time providing fire and safety services at CJ. "The first time I worked for a Canadian Jamboree was 24 years ago at CJ77 in Cabot Park. Back then, I worked on a line crew, walking the camp perimeter, checking to see that cooking sites were safe, and responding to fuel spills to ensure that fires could not start or spread," he noted. "The next time CJ came to PEI in 1989, I volunteered to organize fire and safety services. Those experiences were very rewarding, so I was very excited to be asked to look after fire and safety for the 2001 event."
Since he assumed fire and safety responsibilities for CJ2001, Mr. Coade has spent endless hours working with organizers and staff to plan fire emergency requirements, identify emergency exits and stations, assemble the necessary equipment, and manage staff requirements. He pointed with pride to the fact that more than 40 employees from the Forestry Division will be working with him on-site to deliver these programs. As well, the Kensington Fire Department is on stand by if a fire situation arises which cannot be dealt with by on-site systems. "These people are professionals who understand the requirements of safety and fire management, so their time and expertise are invaluable," noted Mr. Coade. He also gratefully acknowledged the contributions of the Provincial Fire Marshall, Dave Blacquiere, who helped with equipment and resource allocation planning.
Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Mitch Murphy, added his support for the efforts of Mr. Coade and the Forestry Division's staff to make CJ01 a safe and secure event. As well, he emphasized that during CJ, Islanders will still receive full forest fire protection. "CJ01 is a unique time commitment which will involve most of the Forestry Division's staff," noted Minister Murphy. "During this period, nonessential services have been reduced or suspended; however, I would like to reassure Islanders that we still have fire staff on call and that we are working with local fire brigades to ensure we can respond to forest fire emergencies anywhere on PEI."
Over the next 10 days, Mr. Coade and the staff from the Forestry Division will be spending many hours patrolling the site to make CJ2001, a safe and fire-free experience for all.