A firefighter in charge of Mirabel airport has been suspended for trying to save a life when a car caught fire on a nearby race track.
On October 18, a racing vehicle caught fire at the iCar complex in Mirabel after hitting a concrete wall. The occupant of the vehicle, Sylvain Richard, burned to death.
Mirabel firefighters quickly went to the scene, as did those linked to Aéroports de Montréal (ADM), but could do nothing to save the 65-year-old man.
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The management of ADM, however, would have asked its firefighters not to intervene, according to the union.
“Our lieutenant said: there is a life at stake, I am aware, I make the decision to go there,” says Alexandre Bertrand, of the Montreal Airports Firefighters Union.
The fire officer in charge received a one-day suspension for insubordination and non-compliance with the directive.
He would have mentioned that if a similar situation happened again, he would return to the scene of the fire. He would then risk more serious disciplinary measures.
In recent months, ADM management has reportedly changed its protocols to prioritize air safety. Calls from outside the territory of the airport would therefore be filtered, says the union.
“The employer is reducing the value of human losses to one figure in a budget,” said Yvon Barrière, regional executive vice-president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, in a press release.
More details will follow…