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16TRIDENT, NOVEMBER 1, 200435th anniversary of HMCS KOOTENAY markedBy Virginia BeatonTrident StaffOctober 23, 2004 was the 35thanniversary of the catastrophicfire aboard HMCS KOOTENAYin 1969.On October 22, former membersof KOOTENAY’s ship’s company,the commandant and staff of theDamage Control Division of theCanadian Forces Naval EngineeringSchool (CFNES) and seniorMARLANT staff gathered at theDamage Control Training Facility(DCTF) KOOTENAY to commemoratethe occasion.“Thirty-five years ago an explosionoccurred aboard HMCS KOOTE-NAY, with tragic and devastatingimpact,” stated Commander (Cdr)Flemming, CFNES commandant.In his remarks, Rear-Admiral(RAdm) Dan McNeil spoke aboutthe lasting impact that the KOOTE-NAY event has had on naval damageThese are the last fires that will produce black smoke at the Damage Control Division in Purcell’s Cove.PHOTOS: VIRGINIA BEATONcontrol training. Noting that hejoined the Navy 34 years ago, justafter the KOOTENAY fire, RAdmMcNeil recalled that tragedy as adefining moment in the CanadianNavy’s history. “In adversity, thereis challenge and in adversity, thereis opportunity... The opportunity isto learn and do better.”Recalling that the cause of theKOOTENAY fire had been a bearingthat had been improperly assembledin the gearbox, RAdm McNeilstressed that the crew had beenexonerated of any blame. Hereminded the retired and servingNavy personnel who were presentof the rigorous fire and damagecontrol training they had undergoneduring their careers, emphasizing“Our damage control is second tonone in the world today.”He referred to the recent crisis ofCHICOUTIMI and reiterated theimportance of training and constantvigilance, stating “The NavyBlack smoke evaporates for the last time at fire fieldBy Virginia BeatonTrident staffIt was the end of an era. OnFriday, October 22, the lasttwo fires were ignited andthen extinguished on the oldfire field near the CanadianForces Engineering School(CFNES) Damage ControlDivision (DCD) on Purcell’sCove Road outside Halifax.Chief Petty Officer SecondClass (CPO2) Chris Cummings,DCD’s CPO, estimatedthat since 1959, hundreds,1. Are you presently employedearning $2000.00/month?2. Can you afford reasonablepayments monthly?3. Would you like to establish/re-establish your credit?4. Do you need a car,truck or van?5. Does excellent serviceinterest you?even thousands of Canadiansailors have done their firefightingtraining at this site.Asmall group of observers,including DCD’s commanderLieutenant Commander(LCdr) Roger Heimpel, gatheredto watch the historicevent.Eleven students from aHull Technicians’ coursewere the last people to fight afire on the site. Dressed infirefighting gear, they awaitedinstruction from SergeantGelinas.Complete this questionnaire andreceive $100.00towards your first payment *OACIf you answered “yes” to 3 of these questions,call Michele at 902-233-3740to get you new start!YNUsing A triple F, the students in the firefighting course have put out the fire in thehelicopter mock-up.Their test assignment wasto put out a fire from a helicoptercrashing on a flightdeck, with several casualties.A helo mock-up, charredblack from previous fires,was the scene of the incident.Flames erupted from thehelo mock-up and at theshout of “Fire, fire, fire!” theteam moved in, approachingthe helo through thick cloudsof black smoke. As hewatched them, CPO2 Cummingsstated “The goal is toget the casualties out and toget the fire under control.”The firefighters battled thefire by spraying it with aqueousfilm forming foam, otherwiseknown as A triple F.Within minutes, the flameswere out, the intense heatsubsided and the smoke wasgone. After a short break, asecond fire was started andput out quickly.According to Cummings,the old fire field soon will beploughed under. “Remediationstarts at the end of October,”stated LCdr Heimpel.Training for putting outfires will move to a sitenear the Damage ControlTraining Facility (DCTF)KOOTENAY. There has beena complete switchover toenvironmentally friendly andnon-toxic materials such asvegetable oils.These fires mark the lasttime that DCD will producethe gusts of black smoke thathave been the cause of difficultieswith some of the nearbyPurcell’s Cove residents.That’s now a thing of thepast, says Cummings, addingthat any smoke that DCDproduces from its fires willbe white.