posted Jun 2, 2013, 6:33 PM by Darren White
[
updated Jun 3, 2013, 7:28 AM
]
|
Left to Right: Rothesay Police Chief Stephen McIntyre, LRFD District Chief John Long, Hon. Rob Moore
|
On February 22 nd, District Chief
John Long was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in
recognition of his many years of tireless service to the residents of Long
Reach. Since joining the department in
1972, Dist. Chief Long has taken on a number of roles. He is the primary person who looks after our
communications system, and is also the long standing president of the Long
Reach Fire Protection Association. In
recent years, John has volunteered hundreds of hours working with neighbouring
fire departments to implement our “Mutual Aid” system, which ensures that in
the event of a large fire, neighbouring departments will work together safely
and effectively. This system has been utilized
many times over the years, most recently at the Whelpley Fire at Carter’s
Point, and at the Alderbrook Fire in Quispamsis.
Over the years, John’s volunteerism has
extended beyond the range of the LRFD.
During the spring floods of 2008, John took his “Argo”, a floating all
terrain vehicle, to Darling’s Island, to
assist residents who were trapped by the rising water. John regularly attends meetings of the Royal
Firefighters Association and the Maritime Fire Chiefs Association, and brings
the knowledge learned from those meetings back to the station.
During his over 40 years with the department,
John has seen it grow from a small group of well intentioned volunteers, to a
professionally trained group of over 20 members. He’s spent countless hours working to move
the department forward, to keep up with the ever changing needs of the
community and as such, is a most deserving recipient of this prestigious award. |
|