The leader of the Progressive Conservatives is urging all levels of government to work together on potential solutions to protect a Marine Institute firefighting training program at the Stephenville Airport.
The saga of the airport has been a tangly one. Carl Dymond and his company announced lofty plans for the facility after it was sold to him for $1 in 2023, but those never came to be.
The myriad of issues facing the airport caught up to the owners this year. First it was downgraded to an aerodrome by Transport Canada, and then Newfoundland Power cut the electricity last month.
(Stephenville Mayor Tom Rose with the airport’s owner, Carl Dymond.)
PC leader Tony Wakeham, who is also the area MHA, says the power disruption has directly impacted the Marine Institute’s firefighting training facility, placing the program and its future in the region at “imminent risk.”
He argues that without any safeguards in place, the school is “losing confidence in the airport’s ability to support their programming,” calling it a “major setback for firefighter preparedness, public safety, and the local economy.”
Wakeham is urging all levels of government to come together to find both immediate and long-term solutions to protect the airport’s infrastructure, and ensure uninterrupted operations for the Marine Institute and air ambulance services.
