Parkland County Fire Services hosts inaugural Battle for the Bell

PARKLAND COUNTY -- Parkland County Fire Services held its inaugural Battle for the Bell event last month.

The event brought together firefighters from across the region to compete in a number of team-based challenges inspired by the physical demands and skills used in the fire service. These challenges included the bucket brigade, a team stretcher relay, the high-volume hose roll, and the stair climb and rope pull relay. PCFS Lieutenant Remy Lacroix says one of the toughest challenges was the 65 mm hose drag.

"They had to pull the hose to a designated spot, then the nozzleman would have to open up the nozzle and hit a target," said Lacroix. "That one was really physically demanding for a lot of teams. It's not an easy task, pulling a 65 mm hose is extremely daunting, and it takes a lot of effort."

When all was said and done, Team Plugman was declared the winner of the Battle for the Bell by a slim margin. The victory earned them the department's championship trophy -- a bell that was removed from an old fire truck and given new life at the centre of the event. Lieutenant Lacroix says the event was a success in building teamwork among the fire department. 

"Everything about the fire department is about teamwork," said Lacroix. "With our department, you can't be an individual. A big thing that I like to push, is that we move faster alone, but we go further together. You have to build that trust in the teamwork, because you need to know the person you're beside has your back when things get difficult. Events like this are an opportunity to build those relationships in a different environment."

Firefighters also used the evening to give back to the greater community. Teams collected cereal for the Parkland Food Bank as part of the competition, resulting in 135 boxes of cereal being donated to help local families.

"The Parkland Food Bank is a great organization, and we try to help them in any way that we can," said Lacroix. "We also turned it into a competition as well, because the team that brought in the most cereal was given an advantage in the competition." 

Lacroix reminds members of the public that applications are now open for paid on-call firefighter opportunities at the Acheson, Parkland Village, Tomahawk, and Wabamun fire stations. Previous firefighting experience isn't necessary, as Parkland County provides the training and equipment.