ELLIOT LAKE — Even though his damages are in the tens of thousands of dollars, Elliot Lake's Kevin Kucey tells ElliotLakeToday he has no quarrel with the Elliot Lake Fire Department after it refused to come to his property on Dunlop Lake when fire broke out there early Sunday morning.
The property is on the north shore of Dunlop Lake, accessible only by water or snowmobile.
Kucey said he lost his woodshed and garage in the blaze, but said "I'm just glad we kept it from spreading to my camp."
The Elliot Lake business owner got help from his neighbours battling the blaze which broke out just before 3 a.m. Sunday. There were no injuries.
City officials say the Elliot Lake Fire Department could not respond to the fire.
"Unfortunately, the fire department was unable to respond since it does not have the equipment nor training to safely transport personnel and gear across long distances on frozen, often slushy lakes," Elliot Lake CAO Dan Gagnon said.
Mr. Kucey had high praise for the Elliot Lake Fire Department. He said rather than criticize the firefighters for their decision, he would like to go about the process of improving fire service for Dunlop Lake properties "amicably".
"They have a protocol they have to follow. They helped me with counselling. We should probably sit down again to discuss issues property owners and the city face," Kucey said. "I'm not one of these radicals. I think we should meet to discuss this."
There was criticism from at least one of Kucey's neighbours who questioned the fire department's decision not to fight the weekend fire. Peter Merk who helped fight the fire, posted a photo of the burning buildings involved in the Kucey fire on social media and challenged Elliot Lake Mayor Dan Marchisella to explain the policy that kept firefighters away. Mayor Marchisella later told ElliotLakeToday there would have been extreme risk for firefighters had they gone to fight the fire.
