As Wildfires burned through the forests of northern Ontario, pilots and aircraft from 8-Wing Trenton were called upon to help rescue people caught stranded by the blaze.
Speaking to Quinte News, Major Rouillard-Lamy spoke about about the 14th of July rescue operation, which was coordinated by the Trenton JRCC. A Griffon helicopter from 424 Squadron at CFB Trenton was joined by a Chinook helicopter from 450 squadron in Petawawa to pick up groups of people who had been cut off by the fires.
“We didn’t know, how many people that was going to be,” said Major Rouillard-Lamy. “Obviously, Griffin, a smaller helicopter, so only a certain amount of people can be brought out at a certain time. We were able to get the approval of using a secondary SAR asset in the Chinook to be able to move more personnel if we needed to.”
Photo by: JRCC Trenton
In addition to the helicopters, a Hercules plane was also flying over the area to help spot for the helicopters. Over the course of the operation, 30 people were rescued, with no reported injuries among them.
Major Rouillard-Lamy said that she was very proud of the work the air crews did that day.
“I know that for the crews of the Griffin and the Chinook, especially for the Chinook because it’s not something that they do on a regular basis, It’s it’s very rewarding,” said Major Rouillard-Lamy. “They were pretty happy with the results that they were able to accomplish.”
The rescues took place over an area stretching over 150 nautical miles.
Photo by: JRCC Trenton
