When it comes to training firefighters, the Columbia Shuswap Regional District’s fire services co-ordinator is tops.
Sean Coubrough didn’t let the pandemic hinder the development of CSRD firefighters, said the regional district of its fire-services co-ordinator since 2015, who was recently named the BC Fire Training Officers Association’s 2021 Trainer of the Year.
The annual award is given to someone who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in fire service training.
Some criteria include developing and applying new ideas, creatively using resources and having the highest quality of work.
The award is usually presented at the association’s annual convention; however, this year a COVID-19-safe ceremony was organized without Coubrough’s knowledge at the CSRD office.
“While this may be a surprise announcement, it isn’t surprising at all that Sean has received this prestigious honour,” said Charles Hamilton, the CSRD’s chief administrative officer.
Hamilton extended the districts’s congratulations to Coubrough for what it said was a well-deserved recognition of his efforts.
During the pandemic, Coubrough converted the CSRD’s in-person program into online sessions that often hosted more than 100 firefighters at a time.
The sessions were converted into video training modules accessible to firefighters at any time on Youtube.
Coubrough made his program available to other fire departments throughout the province and the CSRD said many are now using it to train their own members.
The district said Coubrough has been instrumental in training 70 recruits from the CSRD’s 13 fire departments to the B.C. exterior firefighting standard, or above, since the beginning of 2020.
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