Inappropriate use of a vehicle, lack of planning and training: the CNESST identifies several shortcomings which led to the tragic death of two volunteer firefighters last year in Saint-Urbain, while they were trying to rescue trapped citizens by exceptional flooding.
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Christopher Lavoie, 23, and Régis Lavoie, 55, lost their lives in an emergency response, while providing assistance to citizens in difficulty in their residence on Rang Saint-Georges.
That day, the Gouffre River was raging, flooding or surrounding hundreds of residences in Baie-Saint-Paul and Saint-Urbain and forcing more than a thousand evacuees.
Christopher Lavoie, victim
Taken from Facebook
The investigation by the Commission for Standards, Equity, Health and Safety at Work, made public Thursday morning, concluded that “the firefighters were swept away and submerged after their amphibious vehicle found itself stuck against a tree, by the current”.
However, the use of this amphibious vehicle fitted with tracks and powered by a motor to cross the flooded field surrounding the residence was “inappropriate”, the investigators established.
When they were about halfway there, the latter stopped moving and began to drift.
Régis Lavoie
Photo provided by Marylou Lavoie
Lack of planning
The report also identifies “the absence of planning of preventive measures to manage flooding situations”, which “led to poor management of the intervention” and “caused the drowning of the two firefighters”.
Ultimately, “the lack of training to carry out work near and above water exposed firefighters to the danger of drowning while they did not have the necessary skills, knowledge and equipment”, can -we read.
Photo Stevens LeBlanc
Numerous teams had been deployed on the ground to find the firefighters, whose lifeless bodies had been discovered two days after the terrible events.
The chief coroner then ordered a public inquiry, which will begin shortly in mid-April.
In interview with The newspapera few days after the tragedy, members of the bereaved families had questioned the procedures which led the volunteer firefighters to carry out this perilous rescue.
“My dad was a hero to everyone. Always helping, never able to say no. And then, I lost it… I lost it. Yes, he died a hero, but I am so angry with those who sent him there,” said Régis Lavoie’s daughter, Marylou Lavoie.
No coordination center
In addition, there was no mention of the risk of flooding in the municipal civil security plan (PMSC), even though Saint-Urbain experiences it every year, noted the CNESST.
On the day of the events, no coordination center is open to ensure overall management of the event and a state of emergency is not declared.
The director of the fire service was also not informed of the content of this plan and its role in the context of emergency measures. Since it was impossible to have an officer at every disaster site, he did not have the necessary overview.
“Despite the announcements of rain, the municipality is not adequately prepared on May 1, 2023 to deal with the various possible hazards,” the report indicates.
We also learned that no personal flotation vest was available within the fire department. Two jackets belonging to one of the firefighters were found near the amphibious vehicle after the accident but they were not worn by the occupants during the tragedy.
Contacted by Le Journal, the general director of the municipality of Saint-Urbain, Martin Guérin, and his director of the fire service, Cédric Châtigny, declined our interview request, explaining that they wanted to wait until the end of the coroner’s investigation to comment. . The mayor, Claudette Simard, had not returned our call at the time of writing these lines.
Several recommendations
Reading the CNESST press release, we understand that the recommendations could apply to several municipalities, with the aim of preventing other accidents.
They must “ensure that their firefighters have the training and equipment necessary to intervene safely”, it is recalled in the press release.
The organization issues several recommendations to the attention of the ministries of Public Security and Education, the National School of Firefighters of Quebec, the federations of municipalities and the Association of Fire Safety Chiefs of Quebec.