Multiple fire departments, including Tillsonburg fire department, were called to a barn blaze on Hawkins Road early Saturday morning. (Tillsonburg Fire and Rescue Services Facebook)
On the heels of a barn fire that caused an estimated $10 million in damages, South-West Oxford’s fire department is hosting a barn fire prevention workshop later this month aimed at Oxford County farmers.
The workshop, set for Feb. 28, will explore fire prevention and planning for fires, said the department’s public education officer.
“We have the information, why wouldn’t we just get it out to the public?” Troy Moffatt said.
But while this workshop will draw attention because of the Feb. 1 blaze outside of Tillsonburg, South-West Oxford Fire and Emergency Services has actually held these sessions since December 2018.
In fact, the department had already planned a session for February but now hope more people will attend because of the media attention paid to the latest barn fire, where losses were estimated at about 6,000 pigs and up to $10 million.
“We’re hoping to turn something tragic into something beneficial because … they may be now paying attention,” Moffatt said. “It gets their attention when tragedy happens, but we want them to do something to prevent it from ever happening.”
Moffatt encourages farmers of all kinds from around Oxford County – especially those with any kind of livestock – to attend. The session is completely free.
“They will, guaranteed, leave with some knowledge that they had no idea about when they showed up,” he said.
The small fire department offers a variety of educational services to South-West Oxford farms, all free of charge, Moffatt said. They include coming out to farms for site-specific planning and inspections and providing educational presentations at local clubs for people and kids of all ages.
The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs will also be there to provide insight on rural fire prevention, Moffatt said. The department is hosting the session during the week instead of on the weekend to reach out to local schools to have students attend.
While the session will run about three hours, Moffatt said they’re going to pack it full of information, so there will be lots for people to see and do.
“If people have no idea what would happen, we don’t want them to find out when they have a fire at their farm or their neighbour’s farm. We want to show them ahead of time and prevent this in the future,” Moffatt said. “The more people that know, the better.”
The presentation is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 28 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Mount Elgin Community Centre at 333204 Plank Line.
Link to original article on woodstocksentinelreview.com: Barn fire prevention workshop aimed at local farmers