A Thorold South man says an explosion from a Niagara Police training session this summer has left him with lasting health issues.
On Monday, 71-year-old Brock student David Harfield says he was eventually forced to drop his studies after more noise from dumpers operating just outside his house made it impossible for him to study at his home.
“It breaks my heart,” Harfield said to ThoroldToday.
“It’s a lifelong dream that I am forced to give up on, but not by my own choosing.”
Harfield, a former flight controller and IT-professional, enrolled in the Dramatic Arts program at Brock University a few years ago at age 66, to pursue a career in film and drama.
He says his short-term memory was affected by a serious traffic accident in Hamilton in 2006, leaving him with cognitive impairment which requires him to use a hoist of accessible learning tools that he relies on for his dramatic arts studies.
“I’ll sit here by my desk and read through plays and take notes with the help of specialized software. I have this giant screen here to watch things on. People might not understand it, but this is what I need to keep on track with what I’m doing,” said Harfield.
“And I love what I’m doing, but now I’m forced to quit.”
This summer, Harfield was in the middle of pursuing his quest in filmmaking, script-writing and acting, and producing a WWII-movie when an explosion in July rocked his house on Hodgkins Avenue, next to Thorold Fire Station 2.
The blast came from the nearby Haynes Dana-plant, which Niagara Police has been using to trained special tactics, often involving pyrotechnics and other explosive devices.
Harfield says the blast rocked his home, knocking down two paintings and a crystal from his chandellier, and startled him awake from his nap.
“Things changed after that,” said Harfield.
“I woke up in physical agony. It was like as if someone was sitting on top of my chest.”
Harfield says he was assessed by EMS after a neighbour called 911, but that he was not admitted to the hospital.
“Weeks after that I was just so tired,” said Harfield.
“I was on a film set and couldn’t function. Others who were on the set got angry with me, because I was there and not at home resting.”
The next set of challenges began recently, when trucks began dumping off soil across the street from his home, less than 50 feet from his front door.
“They have been here all day for the past week,” said Harfield, describing how the noise from the vehicles such as the beeping warning-signal they emit as having terrorized him, leaving him unable to study.
“So now I have spoken to Brock about dropping out, because I can’t study. I have to work in my home, because I have all these accessible learning tools. Brock has been wonderful and offered me study rooms, or suggested the library, but I can’t bring all this equipment with me.”
When reached by ThoroldToday, city councillor Fred Neale said it is unfortunate that some residents are being negatively impacted by the work happening around Hodgkins Avenue.
“But unfortunately that will be going on for a long time, as they need to be putting in the neccessary infrastructure around there, so I can fully understand that it is noisy,” Neale said, adding that residents are welcome to reach out to city council with their concerns.
NRPS said in a statement to ThoroldToday that the service recognize that the sound and vibrations emitting from the training grounds might be a concern for some, but that it is doing what it can to minimize it, ‘while also monitoring levels of excessive noise and vibrations to ensure they remain at an acceptable level.’
‘We remain in contact with residents to address their concerns. Should they have further concerns, we would encourage them to address their concerns with the OIPRD if they are unsatisfied,’ NRPS spokesperson Stephanie Sabourin wrote in a comment.
For David Harfield, the assurances are not enough.
“I’m just emotionally drained. I’m not crying on the outside, I’m crying on the inside.”
