KENILWORTH – It is always good to get a thumbs up from the Ministry of Labour.
In this case, Wellington North’s fire department received a letter of appreciation for its efforts in the aftermath of a propane explosion and fire near Damascus on March 26.
On May 13, Wellington North councillors reviewed a letter to Fire Chief Dave Guilbault from Andrew Selluski, program manager, industrial health and safety for the Ministry of Labour office in Waterloo.
Selluski expressed his appreciation of the work done by Guilbault and fire prevention officer Marco Guidotti in response to the explosion and fire in the Township of Wellington North that occurred March 26, 2019.
Selluski stated, “The occupational health and safety inspector who attended the scene on-call Tuesday (Zeljko Ilincic) along with his college inspector (Kelly Sebastian) who accompanied him Wednesday, both reported that the inter-agency professionalism and co-operatio they experienced was uniquely enjoyable – unlike any collaboration they’ve experienced in the course of their respective careers.”
Selluski added, “At the Ministry of Labour we strive to establish and maintain professional and courteous working relationships with our investigative partners and agencies. Those efforts are frequently rewarding and have led to long-term networking opportunities.”
He then stated, “The occurrence last month brings to light how important it is for police, fire, Fire Marshal, TSSA and Ministry of Labour to support each other’s investigative process when working in parallel. The expertise, skills and experience brought to this investigation by seasoned professionals was recognized by my staff who spoke very highly of the work being done.”
Positive reinforcement
CAO Mike Givens said, “it is always great to get positive reinforcement from other agencies we work with.
“It was a high pressure situation … and it was great to see positive feedback on the role of our fire chief and fire prevention officer in their relations with the Ministry of Labour.”
Guilbault added, “it is not often you get a letter from the Ministry of Labour. It definitely caught my attention when I saw where the email was from.”
He stressed this resulted from a team effort.
Guilbault said all the agencies on scene worked as a team.
Mayor Andy Lennox said, “It is always good to be on the right side of the Ministry of Labour.”
Councillor Steve McCabe added it is not often one is recognized for a great job done.
