WSFD Hosts Life on the Nozzle
Wed, 03/02/2022 - 10:58am
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By:
Amanda Mendez, Publisher
The Willow Springs Fire Department hosted an 8-hour training called "Life On The Nozzle" on Feb 26. Sponsored by the Missouri Division of Fire Safety and the Three Rivers Community College and taught by Local Emergency Training Specialists, LLC, the class consisted of four hours of classroom presentation about fire behavior and how to read smoke to determine the fire's progression. Firefighters also learned specific tactics on advancing a fire hose to suppress fire.
After the classroom portion, firefighters spent the next 4 hours performing the tactics in a controlled burn trailer while being very closely monitored by the instructors.
“We had firefighters attend this class from Willow Springs, Eleven Point, Mountain View, Eastern Douglas County, Poplar Bluff, Fairdealing, Cuba, Farmington, and even as far away as Choudrant Louisiana, and Grand Canyon Fire Department Arizona,” said Willow Springs Fire Chief Vance Farmer.
“I've worked for a couple years applying for this class,” Farmer said, “Willow Springs Fire hasn't hosted a class since 2018. The last class hosted here was "Propane Emergencies" also taught by L.E.T.S.”
Farmer said the goal of this type of training is to keep firefighters proficient in responding and working in modern day structure fires.
“Things that firefighters face have changed and will always continue to change and our lives depend on keeping ahead of those changes,” Chief Farmer explained, “Just think about a house that was built 80 years ago and what it's normal contents would have been made of. Now picture a modern day home built out of much lighter materials and the contents being mostly plastics and synthetic materials. The fires burn hotter and faster now, so our tactics and equipment have to change to ensure our safety first and foremost, and also our efficiency.”