Jul 18, 2013


Residents in the north had a chance to learn more about the essential services offered by various service groups in the area at a special fair held at the Barrie hall in Cloyne on July 12 

Represented at the fair were paramedics from Frontenac County, who were showing off Simulation Man - also known as “Sim Man”. Sim Man is part of their mobile Simulation Lab and is used to help train and educate paramedics. Sim Man is able to breath and talk, shows various pulses and respiratory sounds, can be hooked up to a monitor and shocked back to life.

“Basically any scenario that you can think of, he can simulate,“ said Rena Cooke, a part time primary care paramedic with Frontenac County. “We use Sim Man for out of the ordinary scenarios like very traumatic car accidents, severe burns and patients with no vital signs. Fortunately we don't run into those situations very often but we still train using Sim Man so that we know how to respond in that kind of situation.”

Cooke and the other paramedics demonstrated to attendees how Sim Man is used and also answered other questions from the public. One couple wondered, if they were traveling away from home and used their cell phone to call 911 how they could be located. “I told them that the call would go to the nearest communications centre and that if they could provide a building name or street location, they could be found.”

Also present at the fair were members of the Frontenac and Lanark OPP detachments, who gave tours of their Mobile Support Unit, which is used for calls for missing persons, drug eradication and hostage taking. It is also used as a main command post in rural areas when cutting edge technology is needed. T

he unit is equipped with computers, cameras, lighting, and touch screen TVs that allow for quick briefings on situations that unfold in rural areas. The truck is 30 feet long, diesel powered with generators and it is sometimes used during OPP RIDE programs.

Members of the North Frontenac and Kaladar/Barrie Fire and Rescue service were also on hand. They invited guests to learn how to properly put out a fire with an extinguisher using the PASS method, which stands for Pin, Aim, Squeeze and Sweep. They also demonstrated other equipment, including a rescue van equipped with a jaws of life, a front line pumper truck, and fire prevention goodies for the kids.

Inside the Barrie hall members of the OPP presented their Safeguard Ontario program, which teaches residents how to better design their homes, cottages, and businesses to prevent break and enters. The demonstration covered how to install proper security features on doors and windows and the placement and shaping of landscaping to improve the visibility of entrance points. The term “target hardening” is central to the program and it encourages residents to make their property harder to break into.

Also present at the fair were representatives from a Haliburton fire crew from the Ministry of Natural Resources. The KLF&A Public Health highlighted the various family health services they provide and the County of Frontenac’s 150th Anniversary committee was also there.

North Frontenac Mayor Bud Clayton hosted the event.

Prior to it a brief meeting of the emergency services teams was held at the hall. The major concern touched on at the meeting was speeding in the Plevna area and Clayton reported that members of the OPP will be addressing that issue.

Mayor Clayton said that the day’s event helps residents get to know staff from the various emergency services in the area and the resources they have to offer and to see first hand how their tax dollars are being spent. Along with the numerous tours and demonstrations, attendees at the Essential Services Fair were treated to free popcorn and a BBQ.

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