Fire officers watch crews carefully as fire blows out back windows of the structure. - Sally Jones photo
Sally Jones photo
Fire officers watch crews carefully as fire blows out back windows of the structure.

Orcas fire and rescue uses real flames to train responders


March 4, 2010 · Updated 4:31 PM 

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Orcas Island Fire and Rescue recently used live fire to hone their ventilation skills at YMCA Camp Orkila.

Using an abandoned structure, firefighters set a series of training fires inside the building. Teams of

three to four firefighters worked together to quickly ventilate the building to push the smoke and fire back so they could then enter and extinguish the fire. The 29 responders had five different opportunities to stop the fire before it could destroy the building.

“These are vital skills we need to save lives and fight fire more effectively,” said Training Division Chief and Paramedic Patrick Shepler. “We took this golden opportunity to train like we fight fires, taking the classroom into the real world. It was a very successful exercise.”

Firefighters will have a second chance to train on the building for exposure protection and fire behavior training.

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