Wednesday, July 25, 2007
** Alberta vows intervention before Thursday’s medics strike begins
** Air crash investigators on-site where Alberta EMT perished
** Female UK paramedic inhales toxic fumes on call
CANADA NEWS
** Alberta’s Employment, Immigration and Industry Minister is promising the public a Calgary medics’ strike will never take place. That is the word from the Calgary Hearld (Kim Guttormson/July 24) which quoted Iris Evans as saying the July 26th walk-out will be met by the province declaring a public emergency. The decision will open mandatory binding arbitration. Evans made her vow after the 400 strong EMS union indicated its decision to stop work Thursday at 1 p.m. Evans’ resolve has been hailed by Mayor Dave Bronconnier, who has long advocated declaring EMS an essential service. The main issue in the dispute in wages. Paramedics are asking for an 18 per cent wage hike over three years, plus a retroactive market adjustment;the city has offered 12 per cent. Current wages sit at $21.96/hr for EMTs, topping out at $26.70/hr. Paramedics make between $23.74 to $30.26, while crew chiefs earn $30.26 to $33.54.
** Air crash investigators are now on site at the location where a chopper carrying four EMT/firefighters and a pilot went down Sunday. The Edmonton Sun (Glenn Kauth/July 24) said the 8 pm incident, which played out some 65 kilometres northeast of Fort McMurray, Alberta, saw the helicopter plunge into low trees and muskeg. A spokesman for Phoenix Heli-Flight Inc., which owns the aircraft, said so far the cause of the mishap is not known. The Aerospatiale AS 350 chopper was believed to have been inbound from a Johnson Lake forestry staging area when it went down. Authorities have declined to identify the man killed in the accident. What is known, however, is that the four EMT/firefighters were part of a seasonal first attack crew contracted to prevent small blazes from becoming large conflagrations.
UNITED KINGDOM NEWS
** A female Dundee paramedic continues to recover from inhaling toxic fumes at a call in Angus last week. The BBC (July 24) said the practitioner took ill after responding to a help hail at an animal incineration plant. The practitioner was transported to the Ninewells Hospital. Authorities say the inhaled gas was likely hydrogen sulphide. Three other people also required treatment. Following the installation of a gas monitoring system and alarm, the plant will reopen. The Health and Safety Executive continues to investigate.
