TERRACE -- We were
lucky,
That’s the verdict of

Provincial Emergency Pro-
gram co-ordinator Rod
Salem following a chemical
- spill into the Skeena River
last weck,

The incident occured at
about 5 p.m. on Thursday
near Andimaul Creek, just
cast of , Kitwanga and ap-
proximately 140km = up-
stream of Terrace.

A tanker-trailer carrying
10,000 gallons of paving oil
parted from its rig while
taking a corner on Hwy 16.

It then ploughed through
the roadside concrete bar-
ricrs and plunged down a
sleep slope before coming
to rest upside down in the
river. ,

Describing the oil as being
the product of ‘‘the sludge
at the boltom of crude oil
tanks,’’ Salem said the foul
odoured liquid was being
‘transported in what is called
a liquified emulsion state.

It was held in that state by
a combination of soft water
and; a soap solution, he
added. a

However, once it spilled
into the Skeena -- which is
hard. water -- he said it
would have changed to a
solid state.

tio would have turned into
globules or pellets which
would sink to the baltom of
theriver.

Given those _ character-
istics, Salem ‘added, — -
“We've got off _Feally
lucky,”

“TL could just as “easily
have been a, much: worse
hazardous commodity that it
was,”

However,
becn a scrious threat to Ter-
race’s water supply, PEP

Chief

TERRACE |

Provincial

goverment stinginess when it -

comes to training fire fighters is
irresponsible, says the local chicf,

Bob Beckett pointed out Vic-
toria only coughs up the equiva-
lent of $38 per fire fighter, per
year per head.

That was in stark contrast to the
approximately $500° he said the
province spent annually on train-
ing cach police officer.

“This... is... totally
proportionate,”?.-e -
“B.C, is being irresponsible.”*

The amount. provided.“by the

province, he added, was cvcn less
than the city contribution’
“City — council has -

budgets,” Beckett noted.

While unable to confirm ie
$500 figure used by Beckett, 1o-
cal RCMP Staff Sergeant: John
Veldman did “confirm ‘officers

receive firearm and first aid train-.°

ing locally and are regularly sent
to Vancouver and: Ottawa for
training. #

In other. Words, the solu-

if there had’

- dis-
maintained. .

really
responded - well” the last - two -

_ be Prepared for any. incidents,”*

_ DEAD IN THE WATER: The tiumpled remairis-of a
cargo of approximately 10,000 gallons of paving oil
| nent ‘depends: onf water. PHOTO:BY

ROBER BROWN: "

tanker-trailer-lie in the.Sk
fouls the waters which the city at, the Rive

ina River as its:

nad: been: prepared, with
help -from the Thornhill

"

Volunteer fire. department

pumper, ':.to tap. Fhornbill »

r ~
With’ Deep Creek ‘all but

dry, the “city has been: rely-...
ing. onsthe Skeena’ River for «
the, bulk: of its. drinking .
water. for weeks ‘TioW..
Engineering’ director. ‘Stew
’ Christensen’ “confirmed” 80°

Beckett is coicerned not only
with the lack of dollars for train-,

ing, but also just where they! re

being spent,

*'The availability of training in
the south is far greater than iu the,
north,” said Beckett. ‘Bula fire’
fighter in the north is as much al,
risk as a fire fighter in the south.’’

He said’ the danger department:

menbers face was well illustrated
Inst month’ when vandals broke

_inta Echo, Concrete and sloshed.

nuriatic acid around,”

That acid formed a “dangerous ;

vapour which could have hirmed.

alryone whio either came into con

. act wilh or inhaled il. ~ wes

In order to clean up the chemi. _

cal spill, fire fighters:had to wear’. |

- eneapsulating suits with sclf-”
contained breathing apparatus.

Beckett said his department is

looking at purchasing four more
* of these’suils next year. |

“Because af the “nature of the.
products moving in and out of the
Terrace areca, WC feel we should:

“ity”
‘advising: ‘residents to limit

“pace = with’
“déniands placed upon it,

per cent of ‘Terrace’s water!

was being drawn from the
‘river at the time of the spill.
Based. on the time the oil:

; would’ hive*taken to travel. -

~ from the’ spill. site lo. the
water intake in: ‘Terrace, ‘the |
had issued a warning -

‘water. consumption: between -
thé hours of? a. m. atid noon

vol Friday: +.

fowl

he explained,

The: fire department must also
cantend with the’constant need to
upgrade: ils equipment to keep
the > ever-changing

For.’ example, che 'siad it’ had

‘recently gone:to tender for a new
. Tescue truck to replace the current
“outdated machine, ..

~ Beckeit said there was also a

“need for:a change of altitude in
socicly. itself,

Noting ‘greater ‘emphasis was
placed on fire Lighting rather than

‘fire prevention, - he said 5,000
people.a yearin:Canada and the
“os United: States: died: in: ‘fires ” as
result, ure

Canada had one of ihe worst
fire records -in the industrialized
world, he added. .

“Fire codes, legislation and fire
prevention activities: iced to be

-addressed,’? Beckett:insisted, ‘“Tt_
“who! is’

is. the ©. individual

responsible for’ creating a: “fire-
safe etivironment: for the. home
and d workplace. en :

. However, he emaphasiiea,

the chances of the paving
oil having any harmful ef-
fect on: the water supply
were. ‘almost nonexistent,

“*The truck was. carrying
roughly 10,000, More than
150,000 gallons go by us in
the river every: second at
Terrace,”’ he pointed: out.
“It’s going to be very dilute

_ by the time it gets here.””

fries sting province

Bob Beckett
Tn line with that goal, the Ter-
race department will next year

launch an. aggressive firg pre-.
vention program aimed at school

~ children and-the general public.

The: department: also. plans to
carry out fire inspections: “OF in-

spect every public. building. at
_ least ance dung t 1993, ”

City lan

d plan |

fo see daylight —

TERRACE -- Council will mect
behind closed doors next Tuesday
to consider a proposed land usc
plan for the city,

The plan will form the basis of
the new and long-awaited official
community plan.

Tt will outline suggested
zonings for all parts of the city
based on. anticipated long-term
growth patterns,

Planner Marvin Kamenz said
that report has now becn .com-
pleted and submitted ta council.

It is scheduled to go under the
aldermanic microscope at an in-

camer committee of the whale
mecling Tuesday, Sept.

If council approves the recom-
mendations contained in the
report, Kamenz said the docu-
ment will then be made available
to the public.

It is also anticipated a series of
information meetings will be held
to allow people to get their ques-
tions answered and let the city
know of any concerns they inight
have. |

Kamenz said these . mectings
would be held at the neighbour-
hood level rather than a single

Little interest in =
needie exchange |

TERRACE — There hasn’t been
a lot of demand for an informal
IV needle exchange program of-
fered here by the Skeena Health
Unit.

Metical health officer Dr. David
Bowering said last week only two
or three peaple have ever taken
advantage of the prograth | to help
preven! Whe ‘spread OE The “HIV.
virus which causts AIBS.

And there are sione dotig 50 at
the moment, he said. :
The program is offered here, in

Smithers, in Kitimat and in Prince
Rupert as.a way of: having IV.
drug users avoid sharing necdles
or using dirty ones,

“We're not hearing of a large

‘ demand here,’? said Bowering. .

Skeena- Health Unit statistics in-
dicate that there ate 11 HIV posi-
live people i in the northwest,

ua 3

Marvin Kamenz
city-wide session,

Explaining that choice, he said,
“IE people are going to take the
time out to talk to us, we want to
be able to spend time 19° ‘listen :to
their concems,”’ ; A

Once the land use designations
have been finalized, Kamenz said -
his department”

different areas. .

Those policies would. outline in
not;

delail what was or. was:
permitted within a given z Zone. on

That figure may not be: accurate’
because itis derived only from. -
tesis done in the northwest, said:
Bowering.

Bowering’s aware of three ‘or
four northwest. . AIDS-related,
' deaths in the last. few. years, . on
“Tn, Prince Rupett,. whe re!
estimates of fV.dr

health unit’s exchauige | program...
But a.grouy called AIDS: Prince”

Rupert thinks that 'may be caused: ,
because’ the. exchange is offered

“only two ‘times’a week for half an
hour cach lime and lakes place's at
the health unit.

It’s proposed a street-level pro-
gram whereby 1V drug users can
exchange ‘needles. or ‘obtain
bleach for cleaning 1 necdles.

Health workers walk ..

TERRACE — A labour dispute
that saw about 60 nurses and
other hospital workers walk off
the ‘job last Wednesday was
resolved quickly.

Mills Memorial Hospital. was
reduced to just essential services
for about two hours while mem-

bers of three hospital workers’ ~

unions protested outside.

At issue was the administra- -
tiow’s method of hiring. a new
head nurse for the. hospital’ s
psychiatric department,

Hospital Employees’ Union
representalive Elaine Pigeau said
the job description for the posting

was revised atid the revised post-
ing was never sent to the Health
Sciences Association or: B.C,
Nurses Union local — the two
unions whose members would be
eligible for the job.

Pigeau said union members alsa
disagreed with administration's
intent to carry out-the hiring by a
“‘panelling’? process — hat in
volves a scrics of interviews with
a panel of five people fram haspi-
tal: administration, «the . Terrace
mental health department and the”
health ministry.

‘Such att appointment would
normally be: made. by the hospi-
tal! ‘8 director. of nuralng after in-

terviews with all. applicanis, she:
said, If two applicants were con-'
sidered equal in ability, the most:
scnior employee would get: the
job, a
“"We don’t support panelling,” :
Pigeau said, ‘‘and we won’ tbe
part of it.”’

‘She said. union ~ officiats
suspected management. Had. al-
ready carmarked somcone outside
the unions for the: job, ‘and was

trying to slip through the appoint.

ment without union participation.”
“They were madder. than
homets,”’ said hospital adminis-

“trator Michact. Leisinger,..“"They

thought that that was in fact the
case. | We told them there are a

cont! don A2

Deadlines
With the ‘Labour. Day
‘weekend coming up, dead-
"tines for. next. Wednesday’ s
paper area day. ahead cof
normal, a
Therefore, the deadline for
classified ads, displays, ‘ads,
contributed’ articles: and let-.
ters to the editor are: 3 Pn m.
tomorrow,

Poaching

¢ Bears are being killed
to feed a lucrative Far
Eastern parts market

_ FEATURE « ¢ AS.

~ farewell.

“AU REVOIR
+ Voyageurs bid their
fiew-found friends a fond

: COMMU NITY » BT

“The

is as unsanitary

stench,
mess, flies, ete,

as it is disgust-
ing to deal
with. >? |

“NEWSe A7

would then |
prepare specific policies for: the =

Users idge.;
‘the300° anatky ‘hére “algo. ‘Wasatt -
been. .a. ‘great ‘demand. --for: the: 7