A piece of the Methanex plant currently being demolished will live on in Kitimat for years to come.
A staircase removed from one of the steel tanks that was taken down has been donated to the Kitimat Fire Department by LNG Canada in conjunction with Haisla/Cervco.
Fire chief Trent Bossence said the stairs, which will be reinstalled at the fire department’s training centre in spring, will be used for high angle rescue training.
”Once upright, the stairs will stand 18 metres tall and will act as a free-standing structure for the purpose of enhancing the specialized skills involved in high angle rescue,” said Bossence.
“As with all specialized skill development, having a structure of this nature to maintain the skills required is truly invaluable.”
He said the stairs would not only further enhance the skill level of the firefighters, but would also provide training with a degree of safety that is not always available when using locations that may be exposed to “unpredictable elements or conditions”.
“As you can imagine, the consequence of error is magnified when working at these heights in an uncontrolled environment,” said Bossence.
He thanked LNG Canada and Haisla/Cervco for donating and delivering the structure to their training grounds.
“This is a huge addition to our training needs. Not only will this training structure benefit the community, but also our industry for many years,” said Bossence. He said plans are now underway to have the footings that will support the structure constructed and the stairs put in its permanent location.