ESTEVAN - Estevan fire crews had a busy end of a busy week.
On Saturday at about 10:30 a.m., fire crews responded to a report of a tractor fire occurring at a property northwest of the city in the RM of Estevan. Upon firefighters' arrival, the tractor was fully engulfed in flames.
"Crews worked diligently to extinguish the fire. There were no reported injuries on behalf of the owner of the equipment or the Estevan fire department crew members. Once the fire was extinguished, the scene was turned back over to the property owner and crews returned to the station," said Estevan Fire Chief Dale Feser.
The tractor was a total loss. The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but they are suspecting that a mechanical malfunction or hydraulic line failure resulted in the emergency.
Feser noted that while equipment fires are rarer in winter, emergencies can occur at any time and it's good to be ready.
"Definitely, tractors are used all year round, and mechanical failures with some of the equipment that they're using can occur. So just a gentle reminder to make sure that all farming equipment has the fire extinguisher onboard to hopefully get the fire out while it's still fairly small and manageable. But again, do not hesitate in calling 911 to get the fire department crews out just in case fire extinguishers are not enough to put out the fire," Feser said.
Friday evening, firefighters also assisted the Estevan conservation office and the city police with relocating a moose that was wandering around the 1600-block of Third Street in Estevan.
Firefighters brought out a trailer and once the moose was tranquillized they loaded up the animal and took it outside the city limits.
“Once the moose had regained its legs, it was off to hopefully make some new friends up and out in the wild and outside the city limits,” said Estevan Fire Chief Dale Feser.
He explained that if there is a moose sighting within the city, the conservation officers will monitor what animals are doing first. If they do start to become a nuisance, they will relocate it outside the city limits.
“In this case, we're in a high traffic area. So I think that was one of the major deciding factors as we were trying to avoid any animal collisions with motor vehicles,” Feser explained.
He also reminded the public to never approach the wildlife if they come across it in town and be cautious while driving, as there were numerous reports of moose sightings in Estevan lately.
“If you see animals of this size in the wild, please make sure that you're keeping your distance, stay away from these animals, because it can become quite deadly if they decide to charge and attack,” Feser said.
