Greg Saunders was in his mid-20’s, just two years into his career as a North Bay firefighter when the call came in of a fire at a downtown business.
Fire crews quickly responded to the inferno that swept through Richardson’s, battling not only to save the Main St. store but to try and prevent the flames from spreading to neighbouring buildings.
Despite their best efforts, Richardson's could not be saved.
Now Deputy Fire Chief of North Bay Fire and Emergency Services, memories of that day came flooding back to Saunders when he saw pictures of the fire at the official opening of “Ablaze: Firefighting in North Bay” an exhibit now on display at the North Bay Museum.
“I remember putting the flashlight up to my face mask and the smoke was so thick that I didn’t even think my flashlight was on, quite frankly. I remember thinking ‘Why am I here?’ But that’s my job and I’m going to do the job to the best of my ability. But what it brought back vividly, was what I felt that day.”
The exhibit is a compilation of pictures from many of the major blazes in the city. Pictures of the Barry Building explosion, the Nipissing Junction Esso Fire of 1978, the City Laundry fire, and the Airport Hill Explosion in 1961 are just some of the images hanging on the museum walls.
“We’re celebrating the work the fire department has done throughout the years. The main portion of the exhibit is actually historic photos of fires during and after the fact,” explained Naomi Hehn curator of the North Bay Museum.
“Beyond talking about the fire department, it is really talking about the impact fires have also had on North Bay. It has a lot to do with how North Bay looks now, how our downtown looks, how it has affected people’s homes or businesses that have gone up in flames. As someone who lives and works downtown, for me it was really interesting to learn all about these different fires and what once stood in different spots across the city. It is also about cherishing the historic buildings we still have.”
The Deputy Fire Chief says the role of firefighters extends beyond fire prevention and response.
“Today’s fire service job includes technical rescue response, responses to motor vehicle collisions, advanced medical responses, responses to hazmat instances (hazardous materials) right through the whole province of Ontario, ice water rescue, and trail rescue,” said Saunders.
In today's environment fighting fires has become increasingly more dangerous.
“What used to burn in a fire was actually pretty safe. It was not terribly toxic. But the fire that we get today, the construction materials that are used today are so very toxic, they’re cancer causing. That is why we go to great lengths to keep people safe, buying them terrific safety equipment if we can, because the fires are actually more dangerous today than they were 50-60 years ago, “explained Saunders.
Retired Platoon Chief John Sutherland spent 35 years with the department.
He sees the exhibit as a show of appreciation for the work done by firefighters.
“It is amazing to see this in the museum, and the recognition for all the firefighters past and the present is really beautiful,” said Sutherland.
He remembers as a young firefighter being off duty, standing a short distance away from the Barry Building explosion, feeling the ground shake and turning around to see the building leveled.
He also recalls as a teenager, the Transportation Building fire, which is now the location of the parkette downtown across from the Scotiabank on Main Street.
“When it caught fire and collapsed. My grandmother lived on the top floor and the firefighters went in and rescued her and brought her out of the building.”
Sutherland is proud of the work being done by city firefighters.
“These guys are so well trained with the new equipment and the bunker gear and the best trucks and communication equipment. The older guys walked into the fire and did their thing and they were so courageous and brave, and so are these young fellas. They’re just a great bunch of guys,” said Sutherland.
“This exhibit is great because the public can actually now see what the guys do for a living. They’re not sitting in the station doing nothing. They’re extremely well trained by our training division. Fire prevention is really up to date, and they’re out all the time at the schools with the children. The changes are unbelievable. The city should be very pleased to have a department like this, and they should be happy they’re so well trained.”
Two years in the making, the exhibit came together with the help of North Bay firefighters Chris Cuthbertson and Mike Hives who are responsible for much of the research.
Station One contains the archives of all the historical artifacts for the fire department, so when Cuthbertson saw what was there, he knew immediately that it had to be shared with the community.
“I couldn’t have asked for anything better. To see the photographs up here on the walls and to see the artifacts that we have is a good representation of what our department has done from a historical aspect. It is a great comparison to be able to see what we utilize nowadays compared to what they had in the past to fight fires.”
The fire department has gone to great lengths to preserve its history.
“Because history is a very big part of our fire department, the new station we had built back in 2000 on Princess Street, some of the old bricks were taken out of the old station that was torn down and incorporated into our new building. And the fire pole was transferred to the new building from the fire stations we’ve had in the past. That fire pole is over 100 years old. It is so worn out you can’t even see who the manufacturer of the brass pole is now. You think of how many firefighters have slid down that pole going to fight a fire, to save a life, to rescue somebody. So, it is pretty neat,” smiled Cuthbertson.
The official opening of the exhibit kicked off two days of free admission ending Saturday, as the museum’s contribution to the Bay Days festival.
The exhibit will be up for the entire summer.