QUEEN’S PARK, TORONTO – Veteran forest firefighter Noah Freedman and Ontario Public Service Employees Union President JP Hornick joined with NDP MPPs Lise Vaugeois, Guy Bourgouin, and Sol Mamakwa today to call out the Ford government for their complete disregard for forest firefighters’ health and safety and to demand action before the start of the 2024 fire season. “…forest firefighters are at a higher risk of cancer and heart disease than other workers. …forest firefighters don’t have automatic recognition for Workplace Safety and Insurance Board coverage. Instead they must prove a strong causal link between their exposure and diagnosis . It’s shameful,” said JP Hornick. “The Health and Safety document we filed with the government, and their response, is proof that they have been willfully ignorant and negligent for years, expecting that no one was paying attention. Some of us are still here, we are all dying, and we will no longer be silenced,” said Noah Freedman.