Firefighter Training Teaches How to Survive
Area 4 Fire Training. PHOTO | Lynn Bledsoe
Lynn Bledsoe
Gimlet Managing Editor
Kentucky State Fire Commission hosted training for volunteer firefighters in Area 4 on Sept 21 in Brownsville, KY. Kevin Jandt, State Fire and Rescue Instructor and Cave City Fire Chief, was in charge of the training. It was a informative weekend for the volunteer trainees.
The firefighter state safety, survival and rescue course is required to be certified as a fire fighter. The firemen trained what to do if they became separated during a structure fire and how to rescue another fire fighter.
Volunteers allow themselves to be dragged down stairs in training. PHOTO | Lynn Bledsoe
It is valuable for new recruits to learn what to do. Each firefighter has to learn how to work on their own in case they become separated and then they work as a team to rescue a firefighter. These teams are called Rapid Intervention Teams, RIT Team, they learned how to drag firefighters in full gear, down steps and how to use ropes to lower someone out a window. In the picture is a real firefighter being dragged down steps, not a fake dummy. These training courses are made to be difficult due to the real-life situations firefighters face every day.
This was a two-day training session. Along with local Edmonson County Volunteer firefighters Butler County also attended. The training courses are held in three locations in the district, and anyone can attend.
