WINNIPEG

'This is a new kind of danger we're now facing': firefighters union speaks out after violent assault

WINNIPEG -- In the late hours of New Year’s Eve, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service responded to a fire alarm at an apartment on Elgin Avenue.

When crews went inside they were confronted by a man with a knife who threatened to kill them.

“We were informed last night that there was a very serious incident in which there was a knife attack on a group of firefighters going to a fire call,” said Alex Forrest, president of the United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg.

The confrontation between fire crews and the knife-wielding man left two firefighters injured.

The remaining firefighters took action and restrained the man until police arrived.

“We know we put our lives on the line every single time we go into fires,” said Forrest.

“This is a new kind of danger that we’re now facing.”

Police said a 19-year-old man has been arrested and is being charged with uttering threats, assault with a weapon, and resisting a peace officer. He remains in custody.

Forrest believes the department may have to re-examine its policies and err on the side of caution in the future.

He said they don’t have the resources to deal with these kinds of incidents, and believes they need more in order to be a part of the solution.

“We need resources to help us hold the fort,” said Forrest.

“Until we can deal with the socio-economic problems that underline this. The mental health issues, the addictions."

Police and firefighters in Winnipeg were allegedly assaulted on New Year’s Eve

Canadian Press

Winnipeg police say some of the city’s officers, as well as a couple of firefighters, faced assaults and injuries as 2019 ended and 2020 began.

In one case on Tuesday night, police say they responded to a report of a family incident where a man allegedly threatened to kill a woman, and then damaged a house as he fled.

Police say that when two officers caught up with him, he allegedly resisted arrest and injured both officers, with one requiring treatment in hospital.

Later in the evening, police say firefighters who responded to an alarm at an apartment building were allegedly punched and threatened with a knife when they encountered a group of people in a hallway on the eighth floor.

Two firefighters and a 19-year-old suspect were treated at a hospital for injuries

Early Wednesday morning, police say the driver of a stolen truck they’d pulled over came at them with a knife, and had to be restrained with a Taser.

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