The Sidney Volunteer Fire Department swooped in and saved the day, fixing a damaged flagpole and Canada flag in downtown Sidney.
Due to recent heavy weather, the flag had become tattered and the flagpole had sustained damage, leading to the national flag fluttering at below half-mast and upside down.
An American visitor wrote an angry note to the News Review questioning the town’s national and civic pride in allowing something like this to happen.
Residents debated the issue, with many thanking the visitor for bringing it to their attention, and saying something should be done.
The building owner and Canada Post both expected the other to deal with the flag.
“We’re stepping up,” said Sidney Fire Chief Brett Mikkelsen.
Once staffing was in place to cover their core duties on
Tuesday morning, Mikkelsen assigned three firefighters to safely climb the outside of the building using ladders and go to work on the flag and flagpole.
“It was in a shabby state of repair,” he said. “It wasn’t as simple as it first looked but hopefully it will now be more resilient to wind and weather.”
The flagpole had to be removed and its guy ropes and rivets replaced before it could be safely lifted into place and a flag hoisted.
Mikkelsen said he was happy to contribute to the town in this way and confirmed the fire department would be donating a flag for the flagpole.
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