ARICHAT - Following a report from Richmond County's Emergency Services Coordinator, municipal councillors are still seeking answers in terms of the best way to install and fund new hydrants requested by local volunteer fire departments. 

Council directed municipal staff to reach out to municipalities across Nova Scotia to see how they fund so-called "dry hydrants," following a December presentation to council's Committee of the Whole by the Strait Area Mutual Aid Association. At the time, association members declared that Richmond County volunteer firefighters only have two options in terms of dry hydrants during an emergency, including one that is shared with a mutual aid association serving the Sydney area. 

In response, Emergency Services Coordinator Brett Hershey surveyed 24 municipal units across the province, determining that these councils either enter into a hybrid payment model with their respective volunteer fire departments, or simply leave these departments to pay the installation and maintenance costs of dry hydrants themselves. 

While most councillors agreed that Hershey's report was "helpful," Isle Madame councillors Michael Diggdon and Shawn Samson suggested that it was unfair to ask cash-strapped volunteer fire departments to spend hundreds of dollars for either the full or partial cost of hydrant-placement.

Warden Amanda Mombourquette also brought up the safety factor in terms of such installations, and noted that maintenance costs for these hydrants could also be an issue. 

At the request of council, Richmond Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Don Marchand will renew talks with the municipal councils surveyed by Hershey, to get more details on their individual hybrid plans. In the meantime, the issue will now go directly to Richmond County's budget deliberations as well as the county's By-Law and Policy Committee, as they await the results of Marchand's latest investigation.