District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services members are being praised for saving an injured driver and someone’s dinner plans in one call.
The incident happened in the evening of June 11, said assistant chief Haida Fortier. A SkipTheDishes delivery driver went off the road on the 900 block of Shakespeare Avenue and hit a tree.
The man was injured badly enough that he wouldn’t be able to finish the call, and BC Ambulance Service paramedics had to be called in.
“Then crews noticed that there was a SkipTheDishes box in the person's vehicle and the address for the delivery was also displayed. It was only a few blocks away,” Fortier said.
With the patient handed off to the care of paramedics and the car wreck being dealt with, fire Capt. Glen Carnie saw no reason why a nearby resident should be left with an empty tummy.
“[He] always goes above and beyond for customer service and supporting the community,” said Fortier.
The hungry homeowner was grateful, if a bit shocked, to see who was delivering her meal.
“Sure enough, they pulled up in front of the residence and the resident who had ordered the food was over-the-top excited. She came running out of the house, waving her arms and just could not believe that her dinner for that evening had arrived by fire truck,” she said.
District firefighters pride themselves on finding opportunities to extend their good work whenever possible, Fortier added, although moonlighting as delivery drivers is “a very unusual circumstance for us to be involved in.”
“It made the captain and our members really feel like they were doing something nice for a member of the community,” she said. “Someone was having a really bad day and they were able to turn that situation around and make a really good day for someone else.”
A gratuity for the prompt delivery wouldn’t have been required, Fortier added.
“I think the smiles in the photograph were enough of a tip for our crew,” she said with a laugh.
