Southwold 175 - March

A Century of Service - The Southwold Fire Department

The Early Years

The fire fire prevention equipment, a two-wheel cart, was purchased in 1920 and owned by the Police Village. This was followed by a 1937 Fargo truck to fight fires. in the fall of 1947, a delegation of ratepayers attended a Southwold Council meeting with members of the Shedden Fire Department asking the Township to take over the operation of the Fire Department, and buy a fire truck. This led to the purchase of an REO Truck in 1948. The previous Fargo truck was kept for use as a water tank and as a stand-by.

Throughout the years, the Southwold Fire Department committed to training and education to proudly serve our community. This included training such as First Aid Certification and classes on fire fighting methods and equipment at Fanshawe College.

Historical Calls for Service

The Township of Southwold responds to hundreds of calls annually, some more widely remembered than others. One significant event was a Greyhound bus fire in 1947. The bus was travelling from Detroit to New York on King's Highway 3, just west of Frome, when the driver smelled smoke and notices the pipe leading to the gas tank was aflame. Whilst all the passengers and luggage were saved from the fire, the bus suffered approximately $25,000 in damage.

Another widely remembered event was the fire that destroyed Aitken's Restaurant at the intersection of Highways 3 and 4 in Talbotville. The restaurant was operated for 4 years prior to the blaze. Damage was estimated in the thousands of dollars in the fire that gutted the interior, suspected to have started over a grill in the kitchen.

Current Service

The Southwold Fire Department operates as an on-call based department. There are two stations in operation, Shedden Fire Station and Talbotville Fire Station. They are operated with approximately 50 paid on-call firefighters, consisting of a Fire Chief, District Chiefs, Deputy District Chiefs, Captains, a Training Officer, a Fire Prevention Officer, a Fire Inspector, and a Fire Services Coordinator.

They proudly protect almost 5000 residents within 301 square kilometers of Elgin County. They protect homes, industries, farms, businesses, schools, retirement homes and a landfill.

Annually, the Southwold Fire Department hosts a popular fundraiser in September, the Beef and Pork BBQ Dinner. Tickets are available through any Southwold Firefighter.

Special focus is placed on smoke alarm testing as part as a provincial initiative "Saved By The Beep", which takes place on September 28th, annually. They also celebrate Fire Prevention Week the first week of October annually, and focus on fire prevention tips.

The Southwold Firefighters Association

The Southwold Fire Fighters Association is an active part of our community. They participate in numerous events in Southwold, including Winterfest, the Rosy Rhubarb Festival, Shedden Tractor Pull, Shedden Fair, the Shedden Soccer tournament, the Fingal Santa Claus Parade, and the St. Thomas Fire Muster.

The Association's purpose is to support fire prevention and protection services, to support local, provincial and federal agencies as required, and provide its members a social, athletic and recreational fellowship.