Local first responders set to take part in annual Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge

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“It’s also a fun challenge for us internally to participate, so we just encourage the membership to get involved,” he said in an interview with rdnewsNOW. “We have members who are doing it for the first time this year and some who’ve been a part of it for 10 years.”

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In total, 16 firefighters from Red Deer Emergency Services and Red Deer County will face the challenge, which is put on by Wellspring Alberta.

The challenge, according to Wellspring, was inspired by Seattle’s Scott Firefighter Stairclimb and was founded by Kathy Blas, the sister of fallen Calgary firefighter Gord Paul.

The event first started in 2015, and since then, firefighters have raised over $3.3 million.

Historically, participants have come from not only Alberta, but B.C., Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Texas, Alaska, California, New York, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark and Germany.

“We do train for this, but it is still challenging,” Bussiere added. “You have to go 57 stories and 1,370 steps, so regardless of the amount of training, it’s still a big task. It’s a cool event because you’re surrounded by other people who are all pretty hyped up, and it’s pretty motivating. That helps make it a little bit less hard.”

The purpose of the challenge is to bring awareness and support to all firefighters and citizens living with cancer.

The proceeds of the event go to Wellspring Alberta, a charity that offers programs and services for people living with cancer.

They also present a portion of the proceeds to support the Firefighters Assistance Charitable Society.

Wellspring Alberta help people manage the emotional, social, and practical challenges that come with a cancer diagnosis. They achieve this through more than 70 free programs and services.

They have centres in Calgary and Edmonton, and run in-person programming in communities across Alberta, including Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Red Deer and Grande Prairie.

Wellspring Alberta reports that there are 20 presumptive cancers recognized as occupational hazards in the firefighting industry in Alberta.

The Red Deer County fire chief said he knows a few firefighters who’ve been diagnosed with cancer and have recovered from the disease or are in the process of doing so.

“It’s become broadly recognized that firefighters are at a higher risk of operational cancers than many other occupations are. This is something that’s important to us as an organization and really to the firefighters’ industry in general.”