Practice makes perfect
Area firefighters use donated house to train
It had all the pieces of a tragedy in the making: thick smoke that billowed over the road, flashing emergency lights, water hoses strewn across the property and firefighters completely outfitted in protective gear.
The one thing that was missing? An actual emergency.
Welcome to firefighting school, Liberty-Eylau style.
The blaze Saturday morning at 4604 S. Kings Highway was organized by Liberty-Eylau Volunteer Fire Department for joint training with Wake Village Fire Department and the C-5 Red Lick/Leary and Redwater VFDs. The house, which groaned as the flames ate away at its wooden structure like an army of red-hot termites, was donated to the L-E department by the owner, who wanted to clear the land.
“Donated property saves
several thousands of dollars (on training),” said L-E Lt. Joe Beck, who helped oversee the exercise.
Beck said training at a traditional fire academy, such as at Texas A&M University in College Station, can cost up to $150 per student. For the approximately 20 who trained Saturday, that could compute to about $3,000, not to mention additional money for instructors and other expenses.
“Not all of the departments in the area can get the funds to send their members to training,” said Beck, whose specialty is fire sciences.
With a donated house, however, rookies and others can get necessary training without burning a hole in their departments’ pockets.
Beck said before a house is used for fire training, certain legal requirements must be met, including a written agreement between the VFD and the homeowner, as well as with a bank if there is a lien on the property. Beck said the paperwork is “kind of like a contract.”
Part of the agreement for the house used Saturday is that the homeowner care for debris removal.
Beck said having a trained crew improves a fire department’s chances of receiving grants. The money, in turn, is used to upgrade department equipment, which is vital, since a VFD often uses donated gear, said Beck, who has been with the department for six years.
“We do not throw away our equipment. We have donated 10 sets of bunker gear to a department that had nothing, and we also have donated an old engine.”
One piece of equipment Beck hopes his department can soon acquire is a thermal imager, which the lieutenant said also can be used in search and rescue.
Saturday’s firefighters-intraining were a diverse group of people—from older men and women to youngsters in L-E’s cadet program, including Beck’s 11-year-old daughter. What the younger set lacked in years, they more than made up in skill, Beck said.
“I’m really proud of them. These kids don’t even have a driver’s license, but they’re controlling a fire.”
And control was the name of the game Saturday.
Beck said that oftentimes, fighting a fire is not solely about dousing the flames, but about keeping the blaze from getting out of control. To illustrate this principle, Beck gave the novice firefighters a lesson on a flashover, a type of fire that can heat a room to 800 degrees.
“If you spray the flames (of a flashover), it actually increases the heat from the fire,” Beck said. “As the water starts to evaporate, it goes up and comes down as superheated steam. It can cut right through (protective firefighting gear) like a hot knife.”
The preferred method of battling flames in a superheated room: spraying water into the air above the blaze.
“Spraying water into the air makes the fire smaller (by cooling the air above the flames). If it has no heat, it doesn’t want to go anywhere.”
In time, a fire kept under control will lose its strength and eventually be extinguished before it can spread, Beck said.
The lieutenant also wanted to ensure the morning exercise honed the trainees’ perception.
“We have to calculate and look at dozens of signs a fire is giving us, and we have only seconds to do it.”
For example, popping sounds from a house fire could indicate concrete sections of the building are about to explode, Beck said.
Recognizing the nuances of each fire gives clues as to what is fueling the blaze from inside a house.
“You may have someone who celebrates Christmas and has several trees in the house, or there could be someone preparing for doomsday who has propane tanks in the house,” Beck said. “It could be a gun enthusiast who fills his own shells and has smokeless black powder.”
“If you spray the flames (of a flashover), it actually increases the heat from the fire. As the water starts to evaporate, it goes up and comes down as superheated steam. It can cut right through (protective firefighting gear) like a hot knife.”
Armed with knowledge from their observations, firefighters can take appropriate action to battle a particular blaze, while ensuring their own safety, Beck said.
“We can’t risk firemen going in on a roof that is about to collapse to save a high-definition television.”
After Saturday’s exercise, the members of L-E’s year-old cadet program had a chance to share what they learned with Boy Scouts in winter camp at Camp Preston Hunt in Texarkana, Ark. The presentation, which extends to today, includes brush-truck demonstrations and an obstacle course, on which the Scouts can participate in firefighting gear.
Through the presentation, Scouts can earn a fire safety merit badge.
First responder Donna Berry, who coordinates the cadet program, said such presentations double as opportunities to recruit future blaze battlers.
“We picked up several cadets at National Night Out (in August) through the department’s obstacle course,” Berry said. “Our cadets do a lot of public relations.”
Berry said while the VFD stokes the flames of firefighting enthusiasm in young people, it remains mindful of the children’s safety.
“No cadet younger than 18 can work a fire,” she said. “A cadet must be at least 16 to be on scene and help in a support role, such as passing out water to firefighters.”
Daniel Berry, Donna’s 16-yearold son, is a member of the cadet program and was at the training. The teen’s reason for joining the program is simple.
“I just wanted to be a firefighter,” said Daniel, who spoke enthusiastically.
Training with seasoned firefighters is the best of encouragement, the teen said.
“I think it’s great that they give us this opportunity to see what it feels like to be a firefighter and see what we’re going to do in the future.”
Daniel understands the dangers of fighting a blaze and is aware not all blazes will be controlled like Saturday’s burn. That said, he does not fear to put on the gear.
“I know that when I’m on scene, everyone around me is trying to keep me safe.”