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Wainwright’s mayor reacts to deadly CFB fire · DEEP INSIGHT

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Mayor Bruce Pugh is available this morning, and he joins
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: us now live. Mayor, thanks so much for picking up
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: the phone call. I know you've had a very, very
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: busy night. Not sure you slept. What can you tell
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: us about what you're hearing, what happened at CFB Wainwright?
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  Speaker 2: So the details, of course, as you know, the Canadian
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  Speaker 2: Armed Forces are an exceptionally professional organization and very well run,
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  Speaker 2: and they have very specific protocols and procedures that in
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  Speaker 2: terms of the releasing of information. So the details that
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: we have been receiving at the town of Wainwright are,
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  Speaker 2: there are most definitely pieces missing. We, of course, understand
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  Speaker 2: that there's been an incident on the base. There have
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  Speaker 2: been some casualties. And so our role in the knowledge
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  Speaker 2: that we've been able to gain is primarily around that
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  Speaker 2: first response. We are very closely interconnected in terms of
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  Speaker 2: joint operations support agreements with our first responders. Our local
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: health care facility was the reception area for those casualties.
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  Speaker 2: It was like a triage area. So we're waiting to
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  Speaker 2: hear more. And I know the minister spoke last night
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  Speaker 2: from Ottawa. And we'll release more information as they go
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  Speaker 2: through those procedures.
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  Speaker 1: What did you see or what did people see? Because
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  Speaker 1: it does sound like there was a large fire, perhaps
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  Speaker 1: an explosion of some kind. Do you just have any
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  Speaker 1: sense of what you can tell me people saw or
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  Speaker 1: what you saw last night?
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  Speaker 2: Well, so the base is a training base and they
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  Speaker 2: run courses through to help, you know, prepare our soldiers
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  Speaker 2: to do their work. So there was a large amount
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  Speaker 2: of cannon fire. That's not unusual. A large amount of
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  Speaker 2: you know, weapons firing and things like that. I heard it,
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  Speaker 2: you know, the whomp of the cannons and things, and
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  Speaker 2: then it seemed to just stop. I didn't really notice. Again,
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  Speaker 2: it wouldn't have been out of the ordinary. I received
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  Speaker 2: a message from one of our council that something must
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  Speaker 2: have happened on base as the fire department was racing
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  Speaker 2: to provide that assistance. And then I was briefed by
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  Speaker 2: our town staff. But later on in the evening, things
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  Speaker 2: we saw, heard, lots of fixed-wing aircraft coming to and
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  Speaker 2: leaving Wainwright as they transported patients who had been assessed, triaged, prepped,
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: and helicopters. There was a military airplane. My understanding is
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  Speaker 2: that they were dropping in specialized personnel to come and
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  Speaker 2: help assist.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess we heard some reports that there were
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  Speaker 1: paratroopers coming out of the plane. I guess that's what
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  Speaker 1: you're referring to there, that people were being dropped in
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  Speaker 1: to help on the ground? Yeah, yeah. What was the
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: weather like? Because obviously that was also a factor. Whatever
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  Speaker 1: occurred here was exacerbated by the wind.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely. So it has been a dry month. October has
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: been dry. And The weather did play a part. And again,
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  Speaker 2: that's where it affected the fire escaped from the confines
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  Speaker 2: of CFB Wainwright on the training area. And it did
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  Speaker 2: get out into our neighboring municipal district of Wainwright. And that's, again,
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  Speaker 2: where Wainwright's too small to go it alone. I said
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: that over and over and again. So we are so
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  Speaker 2: incredibly interconnected through joint service agreements and things like that,
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  Speaker 2: support with the base community. with the MD of Wainwright,
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  Speaker 2: with our local villages of Irmishaw and Edgerton. It was
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  Speaker 2: an all-hands-on-deck response. And we even had neighboring communities coming
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  Speaker 2: to take care of Wainwright while our first responders were
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  Speaker 2: fighting that fire south of town.
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  Speaker 1: What do you know about your first responders? Are they
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  Speaker 1: all okay? Or what have you been told about them?
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  Speaker 1: They are.
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  Speaker 2: professional again in their response. And I know that they,
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  Speaker 2: because a lot of our volunteers, and I want to
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  Speaker 2: stress volunteers, also serve on the base fire department. They're
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  Speaker 2: incredibly well trained. They know the training area and things
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  Speaker 2: like that. I reached out to our fire chief last night.
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  Speaker 2: You know, they were witness to things that you would
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  Speaker 2: pray that you never see. or that if you do,
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  Speaker 2: it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience of service. That being said,
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  Speaker 2: they are willing to keep us safe, to keep our
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: community safe and the residents of the municipal district safe.
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  Speaker 1: How did the fire chief characterize what they saw yesterday?
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  Speaker 2: I didn't have an opportunity to speak to him personally.
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  Speaker 2: I just heard, it's bad. You know, it's bad. And
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  Speaker 2: When you hear that, it's sobering. So when the initial
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  Speaker 2: rush of responding to that event is over, you know,
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  Speaker 2: people are safe, those injured are being cared for and
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  Speaker 2: receiving top-notch care in our local little Wainwright Hospital. Once
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  Speaker 2: you sit down and, as I'm feeling, which is nothing
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  Speaker 2: compared to what they are, the gravity of the situation. Um,
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  Speaker 2: you know, our hearts just go to them. Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: And, and no, it's, it's a, it's very upsetting and, um,
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  Speaker 1: we appreciate you telling us a little bit about it. Um,
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  Speaker 1: I wonder what the community is doing to try and
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  Speaker 1: help right now. Is it too soon for that, or
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  Speaker 1: are you all kind of mobilizing to see what you
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  Speaker 1: can do?
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  Speaker 2: You know what, the Wainwright that I know and love,
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  Speaker 2: and this surrounding area, that support and level of care,
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  Speaker 2: which we're now seeing nationally, provincially, internationally, is sobering. But
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  Speaker 2: the community of Wainwright immediately, whether it's people who work,
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  Speaker 2: serve in the CAF, or, you know, they're a major
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  Speaker 2: employee in our area, their response was immediate. The hospital, like, people,
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  Speaker 2: you know, we need to let people who know what
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  Speaker 2: they're doing do do their job and trust that they know.
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  Speaker 2: And they give us ample reason to trust. But the
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  Speaker 2: weight on our community is immense. I keep saying, though,
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  Speaker 2: how humanity rises and the outpouring of support within our
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  Speaker 2: own little local area here in East Central Alberta is incredible.
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  Speaker 2: But coming from across Canada, again, internationally, it is the
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  Speaker 2: only way I think that we will be able to.
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  Speaker 2: And again, I'm affected from a distance, but we feel it.
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  Speaker 2: We hear the comments. We feel the prayers and appreciate it.
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  Speaker 2: And that's what's going to help us help those who
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  Speaker 2: are so directly impacted and affected.
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  Speaker 1: I won't keep you too much longer, but obviously, as
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  Speaker 1: you said, there's a training base there at CFB Wainwright,
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  Speaker 1: and so there's a lot of people in and out, right?
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  Speaker 1: It's not always the same people. Nothing like this has
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  Speaker 1: ever happened before, Mayor, any kind of accident. This is shocking,
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  Speaker 1: I guess, for everyone.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely. It's, again, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. that we hope never
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  Speaker 2: happens again. My heart goes out to the members of CAF.
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  Speaker 2: They defend us every day. They're spread across our beautiful country.
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  Speaker 2: But they are like a family. They may have served
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  Speaker 2: together on other bases, and they find that they're reunited
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  Speaker 2: serving in Wainwright. Our first responders, the members of our
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  Speaker 2: local health care facility and health care professionals, like... Again,
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  Speaker 2: that humanity rises. The initial response, I said last night
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  Speaker 2: and I'll say it again, if I was to be
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  Speaker 2: involved in a traumatic incident, I would want to be
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  Speaker 2: triaged at the Wainwright Health Center because they live and
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  Speaker 2: work and serve amongst us. They know us. They know
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: our families and our kids. And then that care is personal.
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  Speaker 2: Not that it isn't anywhere else. But the rallying is humbling.
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  Speaker 1: Not sure, Mayor, if you've spoken to the Premier or
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: the Prime Minister yet?
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  Speaker 2: I haven't had an opportunity. I really appreciate I have
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: been reached out to by different municipal leaders from across
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  Speaker 2: our province and the Minister of Municipal Affairs reached out. Mr. Polyev,
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  Speaker 2: our MP, reached out to me last night and we
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: appreciate all of those contacts.
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  Speaker 1: Is there anything you need right now?
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  Speaker 2: I think just, you know, again, the thoughts and prayers
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  Speaker 2: sometimes is thrown into the wind, but it really does
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  Speaker 2: mean something. Our community is. processing. The calf is processing.
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  Speaker 2: We'll soon enter into that period of grief. But the
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  Speaker 2: support and the love from people we don't even know
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  Speaker 2: is going to be something that will be never forgotten
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  Speaker 2: in our little community.
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  Speaker 1: Mayor Pugh, I know you've taken a lot of calls
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  Speaker 1: and emails over the past number of hours. Thank you
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: for making time for the interview. We really appreciate it.
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  Speaker 1: And we're all thinking of you and wishing the community
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  Speaker 1: and the base the best. Thanks so much.
• 10:34
  Speaker 2: Thank you very much.