Fuel fires prepare ARFF for any situation

U.S. Marines with Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) use a hand line to extinguish a fuel fire Jan. 25, 2019, during live-burn training at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan. The training is held monthly to provide ARFF Marines with training scenarios to enhance their readiness to respond to any potential hazards or emergencies on the flight line. ARFF Marines entered the training area and used various hand lines, also known as a fire hose, to control and extinguish the fire. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Nicole Rogge)

MCAS FUTENMA, OKINAWA, JAPAN

01.25.2019

Story by Lance Cpl. Nicole Rogge 

Marine Corps Installations Pacific  

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Marines assigned to Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting, Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, conducted live-burn training Jan. 24 at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan.

The training allowed Marines to practice utilizing their gear and working under pressure in a controlled environment.

“This training specifically is supposed to simulate and fuel spill,” said Cpl. Riphlei Martinez, a P-19 vehicle handline operator with H&HS, MCAS Futenma. “If an aircraft crashes or has a fuel spill and the fuel spill ignites, this is what we would do if that were to happen.”

Fuel spill fires can be unpredictable and becoming familiar with the procedures can make all the difference.

“Here in Okinawa, training is important because we don’t get calls for very many emergency situations,” said Martinez. “We get new junior Marines every other month and for a lot of them this is their first fire or the first time they practice something that can actually happen.”

This monthly training is part of the intense discipline it takes to ensure ARFF Marines are ready for any situation that comes their way.

386th Responded to a dumpster fire.

(UNDISCLOSED LOCATION)

01.16.2019

Photo by Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys 

386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs  

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Staff Sgt. Michael Reed, 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron fire protection crew chief, deployed from Beale Air Force Base, Calif., helps put away equipment after responding to a fire at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Jan. 17, 2019. Firefighters here are responsible for the fire protection of Air Force, joint service, and coalition personnel and assets. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys)

Senior Airman Matthew Archer, 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron firefighter driver/operator, a Reservist deployed from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, responds to a dumpster fire at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Jan. 17, 2019. Firefighters here are responsible for the fire protection of Air Force, joint service, and coalition personnel and assets. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys)

Master Sgt. Leo Swank, 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron fire protection crew chief, a Reservist deployed from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, reports the status of a fire over his radio at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Jan. 17, 2019. Firefighters here are responsible for the fire protection of Air Force, joint service, and coalition personnel and assets. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys)

Staff Sgts. Raquelle Lockaby and Steven Brown, 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron firefighters, roll up a hose after responding to a fire at an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, Jan. 17, 2019. Firefighters here are responsible for the fire protection of Air Force, joint service, and coalition personnel and assets. Lockaey and Brown are Reservists deployed from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force Photo/Tech. Sgt. Robert Cloys)

EM, Fire Dawgs stay ready through HAZMAT Exercise

U.S. Airmen assigned to the 380th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron gather for a safety briefing during a hazardous materials exercise at Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates, Jan. 4, 2019. The exercise was designed to be a Department of Defense certification for three Airmen in the Fire Department and an annual refresher training for the Emergency Management flight. The Airmen were instructed to contain leaks on a pressurized chlorine cylinder, a one-ton cryo-tank, and a rail car, all after donning a Level-A suit. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Mya M. Crosby)

AL DHAFRA, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

01.11.2019

Story by Senior Airman Mya Crosby 

380th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs  

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The 380th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Department and Emergency Management flights conducted an outdoor hazardous material exercise at Al Dhafra Air Base, Jan. 4.

The exercise was designed to be a Department of Defense-level HAZMAT certification for three Airmen in the fire department and an annual refresher training for the EM flight. The Airmen were instructed to contain leaks on a pressurized chlorine cylinder, a one-ton cryo-tank, and a rail car, all after donning a Level-A suit.

The Level-A suit is a defensive suit designed to protect personnel from chemicals. The ECES Airmen also wore overshoe boots, rubber gloves, and a self-contained breathing apparatus underneath.

With the combination of possible difficulties and problem-solving, the teams learned that communication and teamwork gets the job done.

“Team-oriented training like this only bolsters our capacity to respond,” said Senior Airman Adam Theriault, 380th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron force protection emergency manager. “The intricacies of communication are impossible to train on without actually putting on the suit and diving in. Communication always takes a nosedive when we get locked in a zip-lock bag while wearing a 16-pound tube on our back, while wearing a mask, and our visibility is restricted. It's a unique situation where we quickly learn how to communicate properly.”

Staying ready comes natural to this dedicated team, as they’re always conducting various types of training.

“In order to be a warrior, one must train,” said Tech. Sgt. Christopher Dugger, 380th ECES firefighter and HAZMAT custodian. “The fire department does lots of training in all areas that range from fire ground tactics, airfield emergency operations, medical emergencies, rescue and confined space drills, vehicle extrication, HAZMAT operations, and of course, physical fitness drills. In order for the fire personnel to respond to any given emergency situation, we must train and continue to enhance our readiness."

Members of the collective team brought specialized skillsets coming from different jobs, installations and experiences. For the 380th ECES as a whole, training always plays a critical role in their daily mission to stay ready and protect ADAB and its people.

“The entire EM flight has been amazing to work with,” said Tech. Sgt. Brett Miller, 380th ECES assistant chief of fire and emergency services training. “We are blessed to have such a diverse group that is humble and able to learn and grow with us as a team. ADAB is in good hands with this crew for sure!”

79th IBCT supports Riverside County winter storm response

Courtesy Photo | A pair of light medium tactical vehicles assigned to the 40th Brigade Support Battalion, 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, California Army National Guard, stage at an incident command post in Lake Elsinore, California, while supporting the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department as a series of winter storms roll across Southern California, Jan. 14-18, 2019. The 79th IBCT sent five high water capable vehicles and a dozen service members to help as civil authorities braced for potential flooding and debris flow as thunderstorms struck in canyons and foothills in and around the Holy Fire burn scar. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Capt. Robert Parry)

LOS ALAMITOS, CA, UNITED STATES

01.25.2019

Story by Crystal Housman 

California National Guard  

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by Senior Airman Crystal Housman

California National Guard Public Affairs

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. – Soldiers from the California Army National Guard’s 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team activated to support the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department as a series of winter storms rolled across Southern California, Jan. 14-18.

A dozen soldiers and five high water vehicles – including troopers and a pair of vehicles from the 1st Squadron, 18th Cavalry Regiment, and three vehicles and crews from the 40th Brigade Support Battalion – deployed Jan. 14 to an incident command post in Lake Elsinore, California, and maintained their presence throughout the week as authorities braced for potential floods and debris flow in areas ravaged by the Holy Fire last summer.

More than 1,700 homes in the Lake Elsinore area and nearby canyons and foothills fell under mandatory evacuation orders and another 270 were given voluntary evacuation notices, according to officials with CAL FIRE in Riverside County. 

In total, more than 7,000 residents left their homes as the wet weather bore down on the area.

Three storms dropped between five and seven inches of rain throughout the area, a spokesman with the National Weather Service said, with Horse Thief Canyon receiving 7.2 inches for the week.

As the bulk of the storm hit Jan. 17, the soldiers launched four of their trucks to three different staging areas close to where flooding was anticipated. A patrol car followed behind each truck and a sheriff’s deputy embedded with each vehicle’s crew.

Though no further action was needed by the vehicles or crews, they performed the mission admirably.

“Our team did well,” said U.S. Army Capt. James Moore, who commands the 1-18th rear detachment.

Moore noted that his team worked a similar mission for Riverside County in December and that experience is on their side.

“Because the same flooding happened in the area prior, the population and work crews knew what to do in preparation,” Moore said. “The homes that were going to be affected already left or they were able to prepare and protect their property by diverting waterflow.”

Debris flow concerns for the area stem from landscape scarred by the Holy Fire, which started Aug. 6, 2018, in Holy Jim Canyon and burned 23,136 acres in Riverside and Orange Counties before it was contained.

167AW Firefighters express gratitude to Home Depot employees

MARTINSBURG, WV, UNITED STATES

01.05.2019

Photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael Dickson 

167th Airlift Wing, West Virginia Air National Guard  

Lt. Col. John Poland, 167th Civil Engineering Squadron commander and members of the 167th Fire Department presented a flag, certificate, unit patch and unit coins to Linda Marr, Jessica Wine, Jackie Thomas and Matt Brannon from the Hagerstown Home Depot Transportation Division, Jan. 5, 2019 at the 167th Airlift Wing, Martinsburg, W.Va. The gifts were presented in appreciation of the multiple care packages sent by the Hagerstown Home Depot employees during the 167th Fire Department’s deployment to Southwest Asia in 2018. The flag was flown through the skies of Southwest Asia by the Knightriders of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 164, May 3, 2018, during Operation Inherent Resolve. It is tradition to have the American flag present and part of every military operation. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Michael Dickson)