Thompson Fire & Emergency Services (TFES) has gone through a pretty significant changing of the guard over the last couple months.
Mike Bourgon took over for long-time fire chief John Maskerine in June, and former captain Steve Molloy is now filling the role of deputy fire chief that Bourgon left behind.
Having officially accepted this position in mid-September, Molloy told the Thompson Citizen that he’s excited to get started, since he’s been working towards this goal for the last 25 years.
“It’s been in my family since my father was fire chief back home in Newfoundland, so hearing the stories at the supper table you kind of grow into ‘Oh, I want to be a firefighter. I want to be like my dad,’” he said. “It’s always been my vision, my dream to become either a deputy or a fire chief, but this is where I need to be. This is kind of my calling if you will.”
After cutting his teeth in Labrador City, Newfoundland, Molloy became a member of TFES back in 2003, and slowly worked his way up from the position of probationary firefighter to becoming one this department’s top officials.
While Molloy will now spend half his time managing TFES’s day-to-day operations, the other half of his responsibilities as deputy fire chief involves participating in public education and outreach programs.
Molloy is no stranger to these initiatives, having previously participated events like Tim Hortons Camp Day, McDonald’s McHappy Day and the Wapanohk Community School breakfast program as a means of spreading the word about fire safety.
“Of course, next month being October is our fire prevention month, so we really hone in on all the elementary schools,” he said. “I’ll be looking forward to getting out to speaking to all the schools and just emphasizing the importance of fire safety and whatnot. I guess that’s my forte.”
Molloy said that these kinds of safety awareness campaigns are more important than ever in the wake of this past summer, where Thompson residents saw some serious man-made grass and brush fires.
“One in particular that stands out in the back of my mind was the fire up on the back of Yale,” said Molloy, referencing a May 24 incident where TFES required air support from Manitoba Hydro to extinguish an out-of-control blaze. “It’s the first time in my career starting since 2003 that we actually had to put some residents on evacuation notice. So that really was a little too close for comfort for me.”
Even though they are moving away from wildfire season, Molloy said TFES still has to contend with a number of public safety hazards during the upcoming winter months.
“Now we’re switching into the temperatures getting colder, and [talking about] public safety around thin ice and stuff like this, cold temperatures, exposure to hypothermia and whatnot,” he said. “We just want to advise the public that, as tempting as it is, especially with the small children, don’t let them out of your sight, don’t let them play near the river’s edge, because accidents do happen.”
While Molloy admits that this new position will take a little getting used to, he’s just glad that he has a great department to back him up, including Bourgon and deputy chief for emergency medical services Selby Brown.
“For me, the whole aspect of the position is continually learning,” he said. “Myself and deputy Brown and chief Bourgon, we’re here to help each other and between the three of us we bring a lot to the table with regards to our experience and training. So it’s an awesome department to work for.”
