Adam Brunt's training death shocks family of dead firefighter

The death of a volunteer firefighter who drowned five years ago during an ice rescue exercise in Ontario should have pushed the province to ensure those taking private training courses aren't putting their lives at risk, the man's daughter said in the wake of another fatal training incident.

Had the provincial government stepped in to regulate the safety training industry after her father's death, it might have protected an Ontario firefighting student who died in a similar exercise on the weekend, Myrissa Kendall said.

"You would think that with the death of someone, that they would look more into it and laws would change to try to prevent this from happening again," Kendall, 28, said in a phone interview from her home in the Sarnia, Ont., area.

"Unfortunately that was not done, and now it's happened a second time."

A spokesman for the minister of training, colleges and universities said the courses offered by safety training companies are considered single-skill training and thus aren't covered by the Private Career Colleges Act. The Act regulates vocational training.

Sunday's training death in Hanover, Ont., has prompted calls for the province to have oversight of safety training companies, which aren't required to adopt the best practices established by the firefighting industry.

The companies provide specialty courses such a rope rescue or handling hazardous materials to fire departments, firefighting students and others. One fire chief expressed concerns that firefighting students could fall prey to unqualified trainers as they seek additional skills ahead of the job hunt.

Adam Brunt, who died in an ice rescue exercise Sunday, took the course -- which isn't mandatory to become a firefighter through a private company to increase his chances of finding a job, his father said.

Police say Brunt, 30, was trapped under the ice for 15 minutes.

He was one of 12 students taking part in the class, with one instructor, police said.

• Adam Brunt, firefighting student, dies during training in Hanover

Police and the Ontario Ministry of Labour are investigating.

Instructor acquitted in 2010 case

The ministry said the course was run by Herschel Rescue Training Systems, a Newmarket, Ont., company.

The company's owner and master instructor, Terry Harrison, was acquitted after being charged in 2010 under the Occupational Health and Safety Act in the death of Kendall's father, Gary Kendall, according to court documents.

A judge ruled Harrison had not officially been designated as incident commander for the exercise, and thus could not be held responsible for the firefighters' safety, the documents show.

The municipality of Point Edward was fined $75,000, while charges against its fire chief were dropped.

A prosecutor for the Ministry of Labour called for a coroner's inquest after the trial, but the Ontario coroner's office said none was conducted.

Kendall said her family was "shocked" to hear the circumstances of Brunt's death.

"We're pretty much just reliving everything," she said.

"Rules and regulations need to be put in place and there need to be strict guidelines on how to follow it," she said.

The Labour Ministry says the responsibility for such programs is that of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

CBC contacted a spokesman for that department, headed by minister Reza Moridi.

Here is a statement from the ministers spokesman Zak Paget:

"We are very saddened by this incident and our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.

Its important to note that the Ministry of Labour is continuing to investigate this incident.

Ontario passed the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005 in order to improve student protection, oversight and quality assurance in the sector. Now, private vocational training programs must be approved and offered by private career colleges registered with the Superintendent of Private Career Colleges. From January 1, 2010 to April 30, 2014, the Superintendent took enforcement measures to stop 205 unregistered private career colleges from operating.

The Private Career Colleges Act, 2005, considers vocational training programs to be instruction in the skills and knowledge necessary to obtain employment in a vocation. Certain exemptions do exist, including programs of study that are less than 40 hours in length, cost less than $1,000, are funded entirely by a third party (e.g. company sponsored training for new hires); and that are professional upgrading or refresher courses. However, vocational pre-service firefighter programs offered by private trainers must be approved by the Superintendent of Private Career Colleges.

The course in question is considered single-skill training and lies outside of the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005.

These exemptions exist because, at its core, the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005, is consumer-protection legislation. Both the Superintendent and the Ministrys Private Career Colleges Branch consistently consult widely with many of the sectors stakeholders to obtain feedback on how best to modernize the Act and improve student protection and will continue to do so."