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Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I just out of curiosity was reading about DDT, as a show I was watching triggered my memory as a child, when living in CFB Petawawa,from 1960 to 1963, recall my twin sister and I also running behind the fogger,on the street that ran along the Ottawa river with other kids.I was surprised to find others had the same childhood memories.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Until I read this thread I thought Bagotville was the only base that had DDT fog as part of the summer fun! We were there in the mid 50's and they sprayed regularly. I have serious health problems and have wondered about the DDT, but there is no apparent connection. A survey would be interesting though.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Vivianb

I was there at the same time (Corbett Memorial)and I remember the yellow truck (CEPE) and the trailor as well. I went from there to Cold Lake and it was delivered by both methods so I thought it was natural.

David

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I too remember running or riding bike chasing the yellow truck and trailor in alsask saskatchewan. The main road circled aroundthe pmq's, playground, and school.The children continued to play in the playground as the fog drifted over. This was in the late 60's when i was there, i still remember the smell, or would easily recognize the smell. Hey might even chase the truck again.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

You mean they don't fog anymore? How can that be?? Just kidding...but I confess, I'm one of those kids, at Cold Lake, in the mid sixties, on the bike behind the fogger. Remember before the Dak flew over, the green van with the speaker on top annoucing the oncoming event..I think it got every kid out of the PMQ's for that shower of diesel smelling DDT. I think it was diesel..Funny, we still had skeeters everywhere. I wonder how much longer my kids are going to live then me?

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

had a whiff of deja vu the other day. Smelt that old familiar smell from behind the mosquito fogger. I was walking back to the barracks in the Golan Heights and they were spraying in the orchard next door, ahh the smells of my youth lol.............

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Ah Yes, those were the days. I have a very vivid recollection of running behind the mosquito fogger when I was a young tad in Borden back in the early to late 50's....

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hey Sharon,you said you lived at southport and north?
i lived at southport from 75-79 but where was the old airfield as you mentioned "north" can't remember anything else there but all my mom's relatives are still in Portage.
Cheers!

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I have mentioned running behind the mosquito fogger to my co-workers a few times.I lived in Greenwood from 1958-1969 and that is one of my oddest childhood memories if I go by the shocked looks on my co-workers faces! I can still remember the excitement when we saw it coming our way and playing in the smoke all the way over to the Lodges. I too have wondered about any adverse affects.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I was in Greenwood from '56 to '63 and I can't count how many times I followed the Fogger, street after street. It was kind of mystical hiding inside the thick smoke, bumping into other children as we ran and laughed at the workmen yelling at us to stop following them. It was just like a pied piper. I know I breathed in that DDT for hours at a time, but so far no ill effects :)

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I remember the fogger for sure I know there was one at St Hubert, Quebec. I also remember there the manual foggers that you would fill the can up with the chemical and spray your PMQ Apartment in #1 Fighter Wing in Marville, France.

John

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Greenwood N.S. 60-67...just remember that it smelt dam good...

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Wonder if the company who makes Glade Plug In's would make us a DDT smelling one and use the newer style Plug In with the small fan on it. It would be just like being there all over again

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

RE: Fogging in St.Hubert, PQ
Such comments provided a good chuckle. Although I know kids crowded around, I thought I was the only fool who ran behind the fogger! I clearly remember running after the white cloud with particular pride as my Dad was charged with this task. Nothing better on a warm summer's evening than to chase the white cloud, then have a bath, and sit on the front steps in pyjamas eating sugar pie. What a life!

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Remembering the days in Borden when we were told to remain in our home until the fogger went by. Trying to get back outside, past my parents, was a task. My sisters andI just avoided going home all day (just to see the fog...were we crazy) I remember seeing the truck drive along side of the woods on the south side of the base and the thickest of smoke(white) being trailed behind it. You could not see anything.What were they thinking.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Jacqueline: Your dad drove one of the foggers? You must have been the coolest kid on any base...lol..lot of jealous kids.
Hey did your dad ever bring the fogger home and start it up for you on one of your birthdays? ;)
Just kidding...you should ask your dad was he was thinking watching all the base kids chase after his truck...as i've said before,even better than an ice cream truck.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I remember well running behind the fogger at Southport in the 50's.I also remember Sharon Cooper and Northport.I still live in Portage and always look forward to seeing base brats as they pass through Portage.

Hey Bernie

Quick question,I lived at Southport for 3yrs but have never heard of "Northport".Dad was avionics out at southport twice,once in the 50's when the flood was across the runway.So where was it? Mom is living in Portage now and I will be home for a visit hopefully this fall.Thanks.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Nobody else ran in behind the fogger when all the parents were trying to call us in?I think not!I saw more kids running behind that fogger located on the trailor behind the pick up truck pulling it.Each and everyone one of us had a huge scence of pride in our smiles and laughing while the reg force guys in their NBCW suits just shook their heads and sweat some more.
What was the farthest you followed it?
How mad was your mom afterwards?

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I had heard of Northport previously and went looking.. I too lived in Portage (southport) 58-62.. (Grades 7,8,9)

Check out the following site:

http://www.copanational.org/PlacesToFly/airport_view.php?pr_id=4&ap_id=317

Identifies RCAF Stn MacDonald as the former NORTHPORT in Manitoba.........gives Longtitude/Latitude.....

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Tks for the info on Mcdonald, Dave, I was a pmq brat there back in the early 50's...Can't believe that I am admitting to that though...Don't remember any mosquito foggers at that time, but do remember a few others things, like outdoor toilets, etc...How time flies...

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Dave and Larry:When I was at Southport the houses were meatl with the big Air scoop on the roof,sound the same to you?My dad was in avionics for 32yrs and he said he remembered the big flood in the late 50's where the Asinaboine River (know I am spelling it wrong)flooded and he was working the flight line at the hangers on base,with water up to their ankles.My mom has moved back to Portage this Month and I hope to take my kids for the big tour of the base and Yellow Quill school...lol

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Ken,

Metal houses, detached garages, no basements, teen town... We lived at 3 Yellow Quill Drive.... went to Harold Edwards School for Gr 8... Gr 7 was at Victoria Public School in town as we lived in town for a year on 10th Street.... I went to Gr 9 at Portage Collegiate again in town.... remember being bussed daily.

I remember the spring flooding in late '58 isolated the base from town for a few days.... The Assiniboine went over it's banks and right up to the bottom of the bridge roadsurface.

When your in Portage visiting your Mom be sure to drop in and see Bernie Wright.... He has the Wright Spot Restaurant in area of 9th St in town and was in Gr 8 and same class as I was....

Were you there the year the Harlem Globetrotters came to the base on tour?.... a great show....

My Dad was in Photo......

Fond memories and lots of them.......

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hello again David I remember those times well. The days off school because of the flood. Thanks for confirming the Northport/MacDonald connection. Friday night Teen Town

Sharon.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

They changed the school later on,only up to grade 6 then into town to Yellow Quill for 7-9.Funny when you think of it today,squeezing families into those houses.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

My dad, Charlie Todd, drove the fogger machine while we were stationed in Ramore, Ontario (1966 - 1969) and yes, we kids too, ran behind the thing with my mother yelling at us to get into the house! Dad had it attached to a box that was built to sit on the back of a jeep. Those were the days!

Re: base brat memories

I grew up on bases across across the country, until dad's retirement in 81.' Griesbach, St. Hubert,and Rockcliffe look so different now. My best 'base' memories come from my days at St. Hubert (1969-76). I lived on Birch st., and loved biking around as a kid with my buddies, and sharing barbeque meals with our neighbors, with the old hitachi BBQ. I also tried my hand in the infantry for a few years, and loved shooting my FN-C1 at teh connaught ranges.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hello everyone....I'm new to this site. I really must add something here though. I didn't live long on the base in Trenton but we had that same fogger at the Drive-In in Bayside. The owner of the Drive-in, Mr. Sullivan? I believe?, would drive all around the theatre with his truck and spray out the back. Because I lived in Bayside we were aloud to sit in the neighboring yards and watch the movies....AWE...the memories!! I wonder??? Is the Drive-In still there????

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I remember chasing the fogger at Rockcliffe and Winnipeg (I think the fog only served to make the mosquitos stronger at Winnipeg!)

I also remember chewing on tar whenever we chanced by a hangar that was having the roof repaired.

Not much TV back in those days so we had to have fun by whatever means, right?

Jim

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Up at R.C.A.F. Station Goose Bay (June 1964-June 1967), we used to run behind the tractor that pulled a fogger that spewed out clouds of oily smoke. They used to make the circuit through the PMQ's at least once a week during the summer. It use to **** my mother off when it came time to do the laundry!

The C-47 Dakota's use to come up from R.C.A.F. Station Trenton and spend two weeks spraying DDT around Goose and Happy Valley each summer. The ground crew use to raise red balloons to mark the beginning and end of each run and would come across us at about 50-100 feet above ground. It was thrilling to watch it.

Cheers...Chris

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

being a bit older than most of you,while i was on base at north bay they used a dc3 i think it was.i have a pic of it going over with ddt spraying out.carol has an idea.a study should be done on kids from that time.although i know lots of cities used trucks to do back allies in similar ways with ddt.if i find that pic i will post it.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

LOL, I think I have you both beat in the "older than dirt" department: I did my primary Navigator and Radio Officer training ('61-'62) on the B25, C45, and C47(DC3). I remember thinking the Dak was a huge aircraft compared to the B25 and C45.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Well, I hate to brag but I think that I am the youngest out of the 3 of us lol. I used to run behind the "fogger". Now as I was only a stupid kid, I had to make my own fun. But to run behind toxins...OMG what was I thinking. Oh well, still healthy today. I was born in Middleton, Nova Scotia (1964)and lived in Greenwood, then moved to V'al Dor, Lamacaza, North Bay then Borden. I have all older siblings Sharon, Diane, Gerry, Lynn and Cheryl. Anyone remembers my name please get in touch.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

What a hoot!!! We got to Mont Apica in 65 and there were three things we learned real quick...those VooDoo pilots from Bagotville showed no mercy to scare the crap out of us whenever they screamed past at rooftop levels, all kids wore pantyhose over their heads in the summer (blackflies were thick), and the foggers were meant as entertainment for kids! God I loved running through that white smoke, and the smell??...awesome! Maybe that's why I'm the way I am today..

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I was reading a book called "Treasured Scales of the Kinosoo" about the history of Cold Lake, Alberta (including the base) and I came across this:
"The first airspray got underway on May 31, 1956, by a DAK from 105 Communications and Rescue Flight from Edmonton. The aerial DDT spray was to control mosquitoes but it controlled seagulls, fish and birds in the area. Cold Lake fish were also affected."
No mention that the spray used to control brats.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I only a couple of months ago found this site and as a 1950s PMQ Trenton Brat (born 52 thru 56) I have interest in this subject. I am not really sure however if the military was spraying DDTs or Agent Orange. With what is known about CFB Gagetown's past and now known that crown lands of Ontario and British Columbia also being hit with same Agent Orange I would suspect ALL military bases likewise contaminated by Agent Orange. Anybody else having thoughts on this? PS. love this site and all the comments.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Regarding my above posting under name RDK. It should have been "Ralph Daniel Killoran". Apologies, I use RDK on the occasional CBC comments but also I am not very good on computers and postings, its always a struggle.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

DDT and Agent Orange serve two totally different purposes. DDT is an insecticide. Agent Orange is an herbicide. While DDT is not the best stuff to be breathing in it is far less toxic than the Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin in Agent Orange. If Agent Orange were used - both sprayed out of planes and trucks on the base I lived in - the surrounding vegetation would wither and die as that was its purpose as an herbicide - to destroy the food crops and remove the jungle cover that was hiding the Vietnamese. Not to mention the serious health and birth defects that would soon show up in the base population. I think the Agent Orange stories are just that - a bit of Cold War paranoia.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hi Ken, I too lived in Portage on the airbase at Southport and remember the fogging machines. My dad was a squadron leader there from 1958 to 1961, My last name was Kaye.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Does anyone have a map showing the streets of the PMQs that were torn down.
1960 - 1967 (76 Bedford )

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hahaha. I always remember that. The parents were told to shut the Windows while the kids ran behind the truck! Mind you that was the time smoking in cars and no seat belts. Amazing we survived. I was in CFB Mont Apica where the black flies were brutal! I doubt the foggers helped though. Maybe for a few minutes LOL.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

We were based at Cold Lake between 1955 and 1958 and I clearly remember the aerial fogging, but my older brother, John, told me that they used an old B-25.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hi David. Library & Archives Canada gave me over 3,000 pages of the Canadian Armed Forces DDT program for the 1960s and CFB Cold Lake was using a Dakota for their spraying. The Surgeon General approved the bases for spraying by airplanes or vehicle spraying but some of the Air Force stations got around this policy by paying for the air operation out of base funds. Their were even back then concerns of using pesticides indoors (schools, mess halls, hospitals) but not much action, if any, went to monitoring this and certainly no follow up.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Ralph,

Thanks for the info. I will speak sternly to my brother for misleading me. Not by the way, some years ago I had to do some research for a small documentary on Canadians who flew in the Battle of Britain. The National Archives were and are a fantastic resource and more to the point, were very helpful. Cool that you got all that stuff from them. You were a Brat, I take it. What bases and when?

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Hi David. My father was RCAF (Marine Section) and we were at Trenton right after the war until 1956 when we moved to Comox. I got interested in the military and DDT by way of other health issues. If your body's defenses are damaged in infancy then in later life you can expect harder than average damage if exposed to other sources of contamination. Yes Library and Archives Canada are great but I feel much of the national embarrassing records have been recently destroyed between 2006 and 2016.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Several members of our family have serious health issues. We were in Chatham and Bagotville in the late 50's early 60's. Makes you wonder.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I remember playing tag in the cloud from the fogger at CFB Petawawa in the early 1970s. Anyone know when they stopped the fogging program?

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

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Jun 16th, 2017 - 4:15 AM
Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I remember the fogger from the 1960s, but I sure as hell didn't chase after it. Indeed the mosquitos were very bad at times.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

I've been expressing my suspicions to my family for years regarding the possible correlation of my summer ritual of running behind the mosquito fogger and my chronic health problems today. That no parents thought to tell us to stay clear boggles my mind. Nobody gave it a second thought.

Re: Running Behind The Mosquito Fogger ;)

Sharon, depending on when you lived there I was likely running right along side of you.

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