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| Photos By Kemberly Groue. |
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| Photos By Kemberly Groue. |
The fire
truck-mounted training was part of a series of annual requirements the 403rd
CES Airmen complete each year to stay current on different types of
firefighting like structure fires and aircraft fires. As the exercise was
concluding for the day, things became a bit more real as the firefighters began
looking toward the skies as the type of scenario they had just been training
for was potentially going to land right in front of them.
An emergency
landing call was made by an F-15 fighter aircraft that had been flying in the
area. The reservists paused the exercise and refueled water reserves on their
trucks to prepare and respond for the possibility of a real crash and
subsequent fire.
"This
is the type of thing we are training for and it is coincidence that we are here
now. The training is for better helping us mitigate whatever emergency
situations we face," said Watson.
Luckily for
the pilot, the F-15 landed without a major incident and the firefighters were
able to breathe a sign of relief and finish their training.
The
firefighters, re-energized by having had a brush with a potential real emergency
in their training, went back to finish their original mission.
According to
Senior Master Sgt. Kermit Watson, the 403rd CES training manager, the scenarios
the firefighters run through are a way prep them to extract injured or trapped
victims.
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| Photos By Kemberly Groue. |
They
[firefighters] come in and make an initial attack by driving by and aiming a
spray system on the fuselage and knock down the fire so they can create an egress
path for anyone on the aircraft that needs to be extracted, said Watson.
Most of the
firefighters on the scene are experienced and are going through the exercise to
refresh their skills, according to Watson.
Although the
reservists are refreshing their skills during annual requirements, the meaning
behind this routine training is important and may mean the difference between
life and death.
This
training will help us get a better understanding of what we could see in a
real-live situation, said Senior Airman Malcolm Polk, Firefighter crew chief
with 403rd CES. "I feel like after this training, I can save lives. I feel
this training has prepared me for the scenarios that will help me respond
better in the future," said Polk.
