17 Oct 2026: Major fire at CFB Wainwright

[PrairieFella]

.

 

[Staff Weenie]

There are a few GDMO who still have their jump wings. That said, they are not typically on high readiness to go at a moment's notice. SAR Techs maintain a 24/7 response capability where they are stationed, and I suspect that calling in extra available pers to support could be quickly achieved - those I've met keep their gear ready to go at all times. They are also highly experienced at jumping into high risk scenarios, and very good at operating relatively independently until they can be relieved.

With ventilators being used, extra MO and especially a few CCNO would have been great, but finding those with jump wings and current jump experience on short notice wouldn't happen. The extra portable vents would probably have been critical for the air evac - send the patient with the equipment. I believe most portable vents now meet the requirements to be certified for use on aircraft - but that can make those vents a limiting resource.

 

[brihard]

There are a few GDMO who still have their jump wings. That said, they are not typically on high readiness to go at a moment's notice. SAR Techs maintain a 24/7 response capability where they are stationed, and I suspect that calling in extra available pers to support could be quickly achieved - those I've met keep their gear ready to go at all times. They are also highly experienced at jumping into high risk scenarios, and very good at operating relatively independently until they can be relieved.

With ventilators being used, extra MO and especially a few CCNO would have been great, but finding those with jump wings and current jump experience on short notice wouldn't happen. The extra portable vents would probably have been critical for the air evac - send the patient with the equipment. I believe most portable vents now meet the requirements to be certified for use on aircraft - but that can make those vents a limiting resource.

SAR also jump square canopy, not just the round “kick you out of the plane and hope you don’t hit too hard” parachutes.

Reminds me of the situation early in the year where the Brits tandem jumped a doc and a critical care nurse with some Parachute Regiment pathfinders onto Tristan de Cunha for a hantavirus patient. But that would have been a highly deliberate operation.

 

[OldSolduer]

I was at 17 Wing one day about 15 years ago. I ran into an MO with jump wings, a Ranger tab and a rack of medals.
It was one of the Dawe brothers- Phil think.

He was much humbler and more respectful than I remember him as a young lieutenant in battalion.

 

[armyvern]

I saw the clip yesterday of the SARTECHs landing, and it was noting they also brought in some kit (ventilators, etc.). I'll be honest that my first thoughts were that this was likely a tactical level decision made without adequate thoughts to the bigger picture. Yes, it was the fastest way to get some medically trained experts on the scene, but I questioned whether the risk involved was considered. Hopefully all due considerations were made and this was a deliberate and informed action.

That Others May Live

Words to live by.

Risk involved considered!!?? Those were OUR many, many people on the ground injured. I absolutely doubt there was even an iota of hesitation to help by our SARs, the RCAF and CJOC. And, if there was, I'm also certain they all instantaneously went "Fuck it - those are OUR people on ground who need us ... GOOO!!!". Maybe it's just me.

 

[OldSolduer]

The risk involved I bet was considered. And the risk was worth it.

 

[armyvern]

The risk involved I bet was considered. And the risk was worth it.

Absolutely.

And now after my posting and thinking about it another 5 minutes ...

SARs would have done exact same for any MCI, not just one that involved our own CAF personnel.

They've jumped extreme winds for civ casevacs before so that others may live. It's their motto. And they quite bravely live up to it.



Note: "Risk Mitigation" does not nor ever has it ever been intended to equal "Risk Elimination". Risk Mitigation = Minimize the Risk.

 

[MilEME09]

The risk involved I bet was considered. And the risk was worth it.

Yeap, I laughed at all the social media comments calling it a stunt. Sorry but sartechs and the CAF as a whole dont do stunts when lives are on the line. We also throw risk adversity out the widnow when needed.

 

[OldSolduer]

Absolutely.

And now after my posting and thinking about it another 5 minutes ...

SARs would have done exact same for any MCI, not just one that involved our own CAF personnel.

They've jumped extreme winds for civ casevacs before so that others may live. It's their motto. And they quite bravely live up to it.



Note: "Risk Mitigation" does not nor ever has it ever been intended to equal "Risk Elimination". Risk Mitigation = Minimize the Risk.

When I was awarded the MB there were two SAR guys awarded the MB. One of them - it was his second MB.
We had a short conversation only two CAF members with the wicked sense of humor we have developed.

 

[PPCLI Guy]

I saw the clip yesterday of the SARTECHs landing, and it was noting they also brought in some kit (ventilators, etc.). I'll be honest that my first thoughts were that this was likely a tactical level decision made without adequate thoughts to the bigger picture. Yes, it was the fastest way to get some medically trained experts on the scene, but I questioned whether the risk involved was considered. Hopefully all due considerations were made and this was a deliberate and informed action.

You are questioning " a tactical level decision made without adequate thoughts to the bigger picture." andf "I questioned whether the risk involved was considered".

Unless you were intimately involved in the incident or its immediate response, and are speaking from inside knowledge of the event and its response then I fail to understand how you have judged "the tactical decision" without understanding "the bigger picture".

I served in 3 VP (as OC C Coy) and later at HQs that 3 VP reported to and have a significant amount of experience planning and conducting large scale live fire events. None of that qualifies me to question actions on the day, anymore than decades of experience in CAF logistics qualifies you to do so.

 

[Blackadder1916]

I was at 17 Wing one day about 15 years ago. I ran into an MO with jump wings, a Ranger tab and a rack of medals.
It was one of the Dawe brothers- Phil think.

He was much humbler and more respectful than I remember him as a young lieutenant in battalion.

This is where he's landed.

J. Dawe | Department of Surgery

Jean Philip Dawe, MD, FRCSC Clinical Associate Professor Active Staff: UBC Hospital, Vancouver General HospitalCity: VancouverHealth Authority: Vancouver Coastal Health Clinical Office Address:855 12th Avenue WestVancouver, BC V5Z 1M9 Focus Acute Care and Trauma Surgery Anastomotic Leaks GS...

surgery.med.ubc.ca

 

[Furniture]

Based on being a Met Tech and confirming the forecast and weather warnings were issued before posting... but sure.

 

[lenaitch]

One version online says they're trained to the equivalent of advanced primary care paramedics," so yeah, a handful of them would be quite handy in a smaller hospital setting handling loadsa patients without warning. Also helps that they're trained to take care of people and get them out of Dodge, given how it sounds like a number of patients ended up having to go to places with more tech/specialized care.

Knowing the area only by map, I suspect the nearest centre with resources and capacity to handle both the degree of trauma and the number of casualties would be Edmonton, 200-ish kliks away. By the sounds of things, sending most of the injured to other local hospitals probably wouldn't help much.

 

[medicineman]

Maybe a dumb question, but what do the SARtechs bring to the table in this kind of scenario? Search and extraction from a fire area is a core firefighter job function that does need some training and equipment that the SAR techs don't have, so if more resources were needed there are a lot of other avenues to get that augmented (like other FDs in a reverse aid to power).

Just asking as a distraction to what is really a tragic situation.

A few people beat me to it already - they're a spare set of trained hands and minds.

Since the Airborne Regiment went away, I don’t think there are any medical officers that are parachute qualified, except by coincidence that they got the course in a previous career path.

All the contemporary docs I know that are jumpers post CAR were either something else first (medic, infanteer, etc) or were with CANSOFCOM.

There are a few GDMO who still have their jump wings. That said, they are not typically on high readiness to go at a moment's notice. SAR Techs maintain a 24/7 response capability where they are stationed, and I suspect that calling in extra available pers to support could be quickly achieved - those I've met keep their gear ready to go at all times. They are also highly experienced at jumping into high risk scenarios, and very good at operating relatively independently until they can be relieved.

With ventilators being used, extra MO and especially a few CCNO would have been great, but finding those with jump wings and current jump experience on short notice wouldn't happen. The extra portable vents would probably have been critical for the air evac - send the patient with the equipment. I believe most portable vents now meet the requirements to be certified for use on aircraft - but that can make those vents a limiting resource.

Was on a SAR Ex - I think 1998 or 99 in Trenton, we had Russians there as well as it was Arctic countries involved...they seemed a little surprised at what our SAR Techs and the USAF PJ's were allowed to do, as their medics were largely first aiders - they'd tandem jump their docs and nurses into a site with the biggest/baddest paratroopers they could find to get them down safely. Something like this may spur some action to have more CMERT's available in Brigade areas for rapid responses, however that would require some forward thinking and leadership at a CFHS level I'm not sure they want to dive into...though having said that, given the usual CAF play book is to over due things after the fact, it might happen. Might also spur having some para positions open for MO's/NO's/PA's for attachment to SAR Sqn's for large ops like this.

SAR also jump square canopy, not just the round “kick you out of the plane and hope you don’t hit too hard” parachutes.

Reminds me of the situation early in the year where the Brits tandem jumped a doc and a critical care nurse with some Parachute Regiment pathfinders onto Tristan de Cunha for a hantavirus patient. But that would have been a highly deliberate operation.

See above.

I was at 17 Wing one day about 15 years ago. I ran into an MO with jump wings, a Ranger tab and a rack of medals.
It was one of the Dawe brothers- Phil think.

He was much humbler and more respectful than I remember him as a young lieutenant in battalion.

Phil is a trauma surgeon now...last I ran into him was in Vancouver a few years ago. I'd actually met him as a cadet when I worked at RMC, then next time was on our Diving Medicine Courses together. Once he finished his surgical residency, he did surgical call in Selkirk when I worked there until he got posted to Vancouver for his trauma fellowship and last I heard wasn't leaving.