By Mark Squibb/July 22, 2022
The Town of Witless Bay will work with NL 911 as well as provincial Fire and Emergency Services to extend the Witless Bay Volunteer Fire Department’s service boundary approximately 10kms across the Witless Bay Line.
The request to amend the NL911 map and Witless Bay Volunteer Fire Department response district was discussed and unanimously approved during last week’s council meeting.
“So, what will happen is, if you’re halfway across the Witless Bay Line and you have an accident, and you call 911, all calls go to the RCMP to determine whether or not the fire department is needed,” explained Deputy Mayor Lorna Yard. “And you have to remember, that RCMP officer could be in Trepassey, he’s not on the scene, so it’s hard for him to make that call. By extending our coverage across the line, that will drastically improve safety, and faster response times. Because we have a lot of residents who travel for pleasure, for work, and right now there’s very little coverage on that line.”
Yard said the Holyrood Fire Department has agreed to cover the remainder of the Witless Bay Line.
“The Witless Bay Fire Department has a good working relationship with Holyrood, and Holyrood are going to take the other 50 percent of the line on the other side,” said Yard. “So, both departments will notify each other in the event of a call, to ensure that somebody responds and so that way we can ensure coverage for all of the line, which right now currently doesn’t exist.”
