IT WAS JUST PROPAGANDA!

Editor, Daily Herald:

It was just propaganda!

It is important that police, firefighters and ambulance personnel be
prepared for all kinds of disasters and emergencies. However, the
DAILY Herald story on Feb 28, "It's just a drill," is a shameful
piece of propaganda that neither informs readers about emergency
training practices nor provides any safety information that might
prove useful. Instead, the reader is given the impression that more
training is required to combat crystal meth labs.

Is this really true? A scan of Canadian newspapers from 2000-07
reveals only one incidence of such an explosion. The event, which
resulted in two injuries, occurred in Mississauga, Ont., in 2006.

It is a real shame that essential emergency services must resort to
such tactics to get proper funding and recognition. While it is a
long shot that Prince Albert firefighters will need to rescue
party-goers at a "clandestine meth lab," they are called upon daily
to help us all with our everyday emergencies. We should thank them
for that and ask our politicians to put some money into training to
respond to emergencies that might actually happen.

Moe Brondum

North Battleford