“If the accident is so large that we cannot handle it ourselves, we would call for mutual assistance,”

A Fairchild medical response team carries a fellow airman role-playing as an injured bystander during the Major Action Response Exercise at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, May 9, 2019. The MARE included several simulated aircraft crashes, mock casualties and three fires to equip Team Fairchild for the upcoming Inland Northwest SkyFest Open House. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Kiaundra Miller)

FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, WA, UNITED STATES
05.09.2019
Story by Senior Airman Ryan Lackey
92d Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs 

Team Fairchild Airmen and 18 local and other government agencies responded to a Major Accident Response Exercise in preparation for the base’s Inland Northwest SkyFest Open House.

The MARE is a “worst case scenario” simulation of several incidents that prompt Airmen and civilian partner agencies to react and gain control of situations in the event something happens during the show.

“I think this exercise will take us to a point where we are as prepared as we can be,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Clayton Simon, 92nd Air Refueling Wing Inspector General exercise planner. “There’s no way you can be fully equipped for an unfortunate event like this because you don’t know what’s going to happen, but I would say that we’re well-prepared.”

To ensure the exercise was as realistic as possible, Simon went to key people from units on base and to off-base agencies for guidance to best educate and train Airmen and employees in case of an unfortunate accident.

“If the accident is so large that we cannot handle it ourselves, we would call for mutual assistance,” said Kimo Kuheana, 92nd Civil Engineering Squadron fire chief. “It’s important to have off-base agencies participate in case a plane goes down off-base, so that our mutual partners know what to do.”

The MARE taught Team Fairchild several lessons that allowed Airmen and agencies to build and strengthen their skills in gaining control of an aircraft crash situation.

“This exercise challenged us because we usually do one mock crash or one mock mass casualty during trainings like these,” Kuheana said. “This time, we had three separate incidents, with one off-base, so it really incorporated a lot of different things and taught us what we really needed to work on.”

Team Fairchild exercise planners decided to expand the size and scope of the exercise to allow Airmen to become more familiar with various crash types and the actions necessary to best respond, ensure public and base safety and further develop Airmen readiness in the face of any situation.

“This exercise is significantly larger than other exercises,” Simon said. “We want to make sure that if something unfortunate does happen, we’re ready.”

MARE exercises pushed Airmen and allowed them to see what improvements needed to be made in -order to further control the response to a crash, if one were to happen.

“Everything was prepped right; it was a really challenging exercise,” Kuheana said. “At the end of the day, it is a good exercise because now we’re finding out what we need to do; that’s the reason why we do them.”

A helicopter crash trainer from Joint Base Lewis McChord, Washington, is on fire while Team Fairchild simulated an explosion during a Major Accident Response Exercise at Fairchild Air Force Base, May 9, 2019. JBLM donated their crash trainer to Fairchild to help during the exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Kiaundra Miller)


Firefighters from the Airway Heights Fire Department wrestle a hose while approaching a helicopter crash trainer during a Major Accident Response Exercise drill near Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington, May 9, 2019. In the event of an off-base military incident, first-responder jurisdiction falls on the community that it occurs in. Team Fairchild maintains partnership agreements with local authorities to help manage any off-base incidents. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Ryan Lackey)

As the water level continues to rise along rivers and streams and Lake Ontario, state and county officials are trying to keep the rising water from destroying nearby homes.

 

 by Peter Borys

OLCOTT, NY, UNITED STATES
05.10.2019
Story by Peter Borys
914th Air Refueling Wing 

OPENING VO: As the water level continues to rise along rivers and streams and Lake Ontario, state and county officials are trying to keep the rising water from destroying nearby homes.
Five emergency services personnel from the 914th Air Refueling Wing Fire Department responded to an area along the shoreline of Lake Ontario in Olcott, NY where they assisted in setting up one of the newest methods in trying to keep the waters at bay.


INTERVIEW: What we're doing here today is we're building an aqua-dam that we're going to fill up with water to protect these structures that are along the shores of Lake Ontario. The water is rising pretty quickly, we're pretty much hooking up the portable pumps here. As you can see we're going to pump water out of the lake into these plastic bladders. Fills up about 9 feet wide and creates a dam protecting these structures from any water damage.

VO: The 84 foot dam is designed as a basic barrier to keep the water out. Once the bladder is filled it will reach a height of about 4 Feet.
Captain Kovacs explained why the 914th was called to assist.

INTERVIEW: We have a mutual aid agreement with the surrounding communities. They'll call us if they need help with manpower. A lot of times during the weekdays the volunteer companies, a lot of the volunteer firefighters that work at other jobs can't get out to the areas where they live quickly to respond to events like this. We have guys manned 24/7 at the air base and we have a good working mutual aid with the surrounding communities and they'll call us out.

VO:Meanwhile, the lake level is expected to rise by nearly a foot. The 914th Air Refueling Wing Fire department and the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station may be requested to assist again.
Peter Borys for 914th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs.

Spangdahlem firefighters train D&RFS counterparts on F-16, hydrazine emergency procedures

Photo By Master Sgt. Austin May | RAF LOSSIEMOUTH, Scotland -- U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Joseph Horocofsky, 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Protection station chief, stands with members of the Defence Fire Rescue team at RAF Lossiemouth, Scotland. Horocofsky and another 52nd CES firefighter conducted specialized training for the RAF Lossiemouth crews ahead of exercise Formidable Shield, currently underway at the base. The training covered the unique aspects of dealing with the F-16 Fighting Falcon during a ground emergency. (Courtesy photo)

RAF LOSSIEMOUTH, SCT, UNITED KINGDOM
05.09.2019
Story by Master Sgt. Austin May
52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs 

RAF LOSSIEMOUTH, Scotland – Firefighters from the 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Department, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, recently trained 25 of their Defence Fire & Rescue service and Royal Air Force counterparts on emergency procedures ahead of exercise Formidable Shield.

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Joseph Horocofsky, 52nd CES Fire Protection station chief, and Airman Samuel Lofton, 52nd CES firefighter, refreshed the local first responders on response techniques specific to the F-16 Fighting Falcon, particularly the safe handling of hydrazine.

Hydrazine is a chemical used in the F-16 as a way to restart the aircraft’s jet engine in an emergency, and can be hazardous in the event of a fire or leak. In addition to the unique procedures involving the chemical, the firefighters went over shutdown and aircrew egress for the aircraft.

The squadrons at RAF Lossiemouth fly the Eurofighter Typhoon. According to Horocofsky, the Typhoon and the Fighting Falcon have similarities, but the shutdown procedures – as well as the potential for added complications with the hydrazine – warranted the training.

“RAF Lossiemouth only sees F-16s a few times a year, so our purpose here is to train the local firefighters and act as a liaison for the incident commander in the event of an emergency,” Horocofsky said. “We brought them out to walk around and see the F-16 close up, and a few were allowed to access the cockpit and walked through the shutdown procedure.”

The firefighters from Spangdahlem taught each RAF Lossiemouth fire department shift in three-hour instruction blocks, totaling 12 hours. The briefings were well-received by the RAF and Ministry of Defence firefighters, and was seen as more specialized than the standardized hydrazine training they usually get.

“There were two parts to the training: theoretical and practical,” said Defence Fire Rescue watch manager James Ward. “It was a bit more in-depth, and was a better briefing because it was tailored specifically for firefighters.”

Ward said the training is highly beneficial because it allowed the RAF firefighters a first-hand look at any updated procedures, and for some it was a career first.

“It’s good for the RAF firefighters to get this experience,” he said. “A lot of the younger guys have never even seen an F-16, so it’s nice to be able to get out and get hands-on training so the first time they’re seeing it isn’t in an emergency.”

Ward said while the majority of the emergency procedures used by the Defence Fire Rescue crews mirror the U.S. Air Force’s, small changes – such as hand signals used between rescue crews and pilots – are used to eliminate confusion during a rescue.

“It’s helpful to have a refresher on those,” he said.

With safety as the number one concern for all involved in Formidable Shield, Ward says he and his crews are appreciative of the training, and are ready for any emergency that could arise.

“I am 100 percent confident in our ability to respond,” he said.

Formidable Shield is a U.S.-led exercise, conducted by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO. The purpose of the training is to improve allied interoperability in a live-fire integrated air and missile defense exercise.

Nine nations are participating with ships and aircraft, including Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. Both Belgium and Germany are supporting the exercise as well.

911th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, teaches fire control techniques to the Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue team at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania,

PITTSBURGH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIR RESERVE STATION, PA, UNITED STATES
05.09.2019
Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson
911th Airlift Wing 

Members of the Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue team look around the cargo bay of a C-17 Globemaster III at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, May 9, 2019. The 911th Airlift Wing ACAA-FR conducted joint training to familiarize the firefighters with the flash points and system procedures of the C-17. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson)


 Members of the 911th Airlift Wing and the Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue team listen to instructions on wing fire control at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, May 9, 2019. The 911th AW converted from C-130 Hercules to C-17 Globemaster III aircraft and the firefighters need to be trained on the new aircraft in case of an emergency. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson)

Jack Balkovec and Jarrod Barker, Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue firefighters, walk down the ramp of a B-2 stand at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, May 9, 2019. The ACAA-FR firefighters received training on how to open emergency hatches from the outside of the C-17 Globemaster III. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson)

Tech. Sgt. Matthew Dillon, a crew chief with the 911th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, opens a C-17 Globemaster III underside hatch for the Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue team at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, May 9, 2019. Dillon showed the firefighters all of the places that may be flash points for fires as well as where valves and systems need to be turned off to prevent further damage to the aircraft during a fire. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson)

Tech. Sgt. Matthew Dillon, a crew chief with the 911th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, teaches fire control techniques to the Allegheny County Airport Authority Fire Rescue team at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, May 7, 2019. The firefighters needed to be trained on the C-17 Globemaster III due to the base conversion from C-130 Hercules aircraft. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Senior Airman Grace Thomson)

Fort Knox Bicycle Safety Day teaches kids safety, tests their knowledge

Lauren Wilson sits in a Fort Knox fire truck while her mother photographs her. The Fort Knox Bicycle Safety Day event was designed to teach children how to safely ride their bicycles along Fort Knox streets and other roadways.

FORT KNOX, KY, UNITED STATES
05.09.2019
Story by G. Anthonie Riis
Fort Knox 

The Fort Knox main Exchange hosted Fort Knox Bicycle Safety Day in its parking lot May 8.

The event was designed to teach children how to safely ride their bicycles along Fort Knox streets and other roadways, according to Wendy Steinhoff, a certified safety and health official with the Fort Knox Garrison Safety Office.

“[We hold] the safety event to teach our most valuable assets -- our kids -- about driving their bicycles safely,” Steinhoff said. “They learned hand-and-arm signals; they learned safe riding locations on the installation, to ride with the traffic flow and to always wear a helmet.”

To reinforce the importance of bicyclists wearing helmets, Fort Knox firefighters teamed up with members of the Kentucky Mountain Bike Association for an illustration.

“We saw a helmet demonstration where watermelons were dropped from a [fire]truck,” said Vince Carman, one of the commissioners of Kentucky Bicycle and Bikeway Commission, Radcliff. “That made a big impression on them.”

Steinhoff stressed that while wearing a helmet is a primary means to keeping bicycling children safe, kids are safest when parents ensure their helmets are properly fitted. Bike club members demonstrated the proper fit before the children got on their bikes.

“[At] the helmet fittings, both children and parents learned how to properly wear the bike helmet,” said Steinhoff. “Parents should continue to go over the things they’ve learned so that it becomes second nature to them.”

Carman stressed the importance of reinforcing what kids learn through practice.

”The [military police officers] taught them their hand-and-arm signals for stopping, and turning right or left,” Carman said. “We helped shepherd a bike safety rodeo where the kids got to practice their stopping and hand-and-arm movements.”

Bicycle Safety Day came at an opportune time since kids are beginning to enjoy riding with nicer weather, said Carman.

“We can expect kids will be out more with the warmer weather and more free time,” he said. “We were able to do bicycle safety checks, and to give the kids a solid foundation in bicycle safety and practice of the ABCs of bicycle readiness.”

The ABCs stand for proper air in the tires, properly functioning brakes and a working oiled chain. According to to Steinhoff, a tuned-up bike will greatly reduce accidents.

Both Steinhoff and Carman wanted to leave the kids with a parting summer bicycling message.

“Make sure you make eye contact with car drivers before crossing the street,” said Steinhoff. Carman agreed. It’s generally good advice to always ride with a buddy in case you fall or need someone to call for help.”