Next Year...

So today we spent most of the day running scenarios. I got to drag two heavy people in a first floor search. It sucked because we didn't have enough air for everyone so we had to pretend to be on air. But we did do well in rolling up on scene and going through the motions. I didn't do too bad at toolman either. Pounding and sounding are pretty easy. After that english went quick. I talked with my english teacher who thinks we are long lost relatives because we have the same last name. She and I discussed the proposal I have to write for my final paper. I asked her to critique it really hard as I am going to use it for a presentation to the City of Helena so I want it to be done really well.

Yesterday I forgot to write that I registered for classes for next semester. I wasn't supposed to be able to until next week because I am a first year student but being that I have credit for my EMT class I am considered a non first year student or something. The classes I registered are as follows:

• Wildland Fire Fighting
• Personal Physical Fitness II
• Hazardous Materials
• Electronic Communications
• Emergency Equipment Maintenance
• Fire Apparatus Operation
• Fire Fighting Tactics and Strategies
• Basic MS Office

So yeah, 19 credits worth but some of the classes are broken down into half semesters or quarters. I have 3 classes at 7:00am and one class from 8:00am - 4:50pm on Saturdays. Yeah it sucks that I don't get a Saturday to relax but I get to learn how to drive a fire truck and besides I spent a few years fooling around in Bozeman so I don't mind buckling down for these two years. Anyway my roommate is full of the H1N1 so I am bunkering down in my room and I am going to take a nap to battle that and prepare for work tonight, so stay tuned until next time!

A Whole Heck of a Lot....

So these past few weeks have been pretty busy. I started a job at home depot and I've been trying to get used to my new classes. Well let us just say I am trying to get used to one class.

So I recently got a job at Home Depot. Six weeks after I applied there. I know right, one heck of a wait. I got hired on as freight crew. Yep that's right I stock shelves. I spent 4 days straight doing orientation. Sitting there and watching videos and taking online quizzes for that long can be rather boring. But I learned how to use a "Home Depot Saftey Knife" which is like a utility knife, but for 3 year olds. Seriously doesn't cut through much of anything. I did go in on Tuesday and learn to drive a fork lift, OP machine, which i forget what the exact name for it is but it is used to get heavy objects up to the top shelves. If you're afraid of heights I don't recommend that machine. It gets awfully wobbly the higher you get. I worked on a few more machines and I became certified to drive 4 of them. It is fun tooling around on each machine but it can be nerve racking.

I am the youngest guy there by about 20 years so making work friends, not so much. I basically work by myself stocking shelves and I wish I could use my iPod, but oh well. My boss is pretty cool. I think he's part of the mafia. I mean he had his hair slicked back. OH! He also had a prison tattoo on his hand. So yeah, he's pretty hardcore. His favorite phrase to say is, "The numbers don't jive man." That means that the SKU product numbers don't match. It's a pain in the behind.

School is going well. We are week three into our second set of classes. One of them is basically a continuation of fire 101 but for school administrative purposes it has to be divided into two classes. The other class we are talking is Incident Command systems, that's cool. We are going through scenarios and learning how to do scene size ups and do tactical worksheets (see picture).

We learned to do pitched roof ventilation which consists of using a roof ladder, a chain saw and a big hole in the roof. We touched on punching ceiling and walls but we will do more of that tomorrow. I will have pictures of it then.

For our final we are going to participate in something called the Silver Nozzle Competition. Basically we are going to practice first floor search in front of the school. The paper and local news crews are going to be there. So that will be cool.

We started a Fire & Rescue club and I was voted treasurer. So I get to handle the money. Also we are getting a new faculty administrator that will hopefully push the program further. We were asked by the school administration to select one of the students to be on the hiring committee as a voice for the students. Some people told me to do it, so I will probably volunteer for that.

Other than that not much is going on. I'm impatiently waiting to go to Japan. It's coming in 47 days! I really can't wait. I'm going to see my sweetie and hang out with her and her family in Japan, I really can't wait. I am kind of nervous though. But I'm sure it will pass with time. Anyway, that is about it, stay tuned for the continuing saga of Smoke Before Fire!

Chain Saws Again

So I used a chain saw for the first time today. Yeah I'm from Montana, it's in the Montana code of conduct of being a Montanan to have used a chainsaw before I was ten. I dropped the ball I guess on that one. Well I redeemed myself today. I had a few hiccups but then again first time doing roof venting with a chainsaw.

We did two runs. The first run I was crew leader. That was cool. Easy. Second time I was chainsaw guy. Note to anyone who does roof venting, when you get to the top of a ladder with the chainsaw, go high enough that you aren't trying to swing the chainsaw over your head. Just saying. We all had to do the chainsaw today, so I wasn't the only one who did it. So we all had mini hiccups. My biggest one was the chain break. Don't forget that. But I went up there, and I was cutting some pretty sweet lines.

Afterwards we cleaned up and went to english. I have secretly become addicted to the Office, so I am going to go watch some of that. Stay tuned!

Ladders, Chainsaws and Credentials, Oh My!

Wednesday we started going over Roof Ventilation and how to do it. We went over various ways of doing roof venting. Then we whipped out the chainsaw and pike poles and went over how to use these tools. Afterwards we went out into the engine bay and "practiced" how to sound a roof then cut the roof.

Friday we went out to the smoke house and practiced what we had learned on Wednesday. We only had 5 boards so only 5 people got to cut. That's okay though because the rest of us will get to cut on Monday. In this post are a few pictures of us without air. One of me on the ladder sounding, and one of us practicing group integrity.

We all got credentialed to get on and off the airport because that is where our training facility is. It's not exciting i don't get my own badge and card to open the gate, but it does mean that I am not considered a terrorist. That's pretty sweet. I do however at some point have to get my student ID turned into a name card. Meaning I have to wear it. But oh well.

Other than that nothing else exciting is going on. So stay tuned until next time!

Ladders Are For Climbing....

So I was reading in my fire fighting book that a ladder is a device used to move up and down from one height to another. Deep I know. It was a good thought to start out our new training exercises: second story search and vent. What that consists of is:

• placing a ladder
• busting out a window
• bringing the window to just under the the window sill
• cleaning the window up of any attached glass
• going in as a crew and searching the floor for victims
• If a victim is found extricating them safely and quickly

The first few runs we went through and practiced without our air packs and a fully charged hose, just to get used to all the steps. Then we added a charged hose. Then our air packs. Then we added radios to practice speaking over them correctly. Then we added the incident command aspect to it. Scene size up, crews needed, assignments etc. At first it was kind of chaotic because everyone wanted to run through it as many times as possible. Some people struggled and we had some problems running through each scenario at first but that is the point of the class, to run out the kinks so that we can start doing it flawlessly. By our third time we had everything down and it couldn't have gone more smoothly.

I've been busting my butt in all my classes. I'm sitting in the A range for most of my classes and I have been doing really well on my Fire 101 tests. It's just been a lot of work, but I guess that is to be expected when you try to push four years of school into two.

I volunteered for a local cause last weekend. Women in Gear is a program that tries to get girls and women into the trade programs such as welding, fire fighting, etc. We had a good turn out. We let the girls try on our turn out gear, showed them crew integrity and let them try victim/patient rescue scenarios. We explained to them some of the training we are doing and how we go about getting into shape to do it.

Other than that nothing too exciting is going on, we're trying to start a Fire & Rescue Club so we can have fundraisers and do other things that require a club for. I don't know what that consists of but I hear we need a club to do most of it. So we are working on that. I have set up the Facebook page for us to post pictures for everyone to see. It's good for putting all the pictures up rather than having to put just a few up on here like I have been. It will give you more an idea of what we do.

Anywho, I'm off to upload pictures to Facebook. Stay tuned!!!!

Holding My Breath... Again...

So it is cold again, not really that cold but it's snowy and we had a winter storm warning from Sunday to Today. We met at the smoke house this morning for some evolutions. Four people didn't show up so we had to change teams around a bit. We are slowly adding stuff to the mix. This class or set of classes as we divide the semester in half, will just give us the basics of what we need to know. We won't do an actual Fire Fighter I course until next fall. I don't care just because I enjoy being out at there working. But anyway, back to the story, we divided amongst ourselves which added to the general chaos of today. After spending some time trying to figure out where everyone was going to be we took some time to figure out who was all gone.

The group is fading fast. Some won't make it because they won't show up, others won't because they make poor decisions and so on. But the smoke house today was filled with smoke today. It was a good time. We did Primary Searches and threw a victim variable in there. The first time I went through I was on the initial team that found the victim, just to see how it would be with the smoke. Then I was on the RIT team. That was a hoot. The picture to the left is me in full gear waiting to be called in. Next I played the victim. I got tossed around worse than a crash test dummy but it was fun. We all had a laugh when one of the fire fighters ran in without his helmet.

Instructor: *taps guy on shoulder* Um... where is your helmet?

Fire fighter: *Feels around on his head.* Ah F%$#!

We all had a good laugh at that. The guy who I wrote about throwing a temper tantrum ended up doing it again, this time towards an instructor. After that failed attempt at a Primary Search our instructor grouped us up and started lecturing us about having a poor attitude. Then the kid started to talk back and finally after listening to it enough three of us snapped and told him to shut the heck up and listen. Seriously, attitude in this field is everything. Well attitude is a lot of it for most fields, but in a field where lives count on you, and people count on you to protect them and their belongings it's even more important. One bad attitude can mean the difference between life and death. So the rest of us were a little less than forgiving about this second tantrum.

After that we went to the school and received our shirts and hat. Tomorrow I'll post a picture of me fully outfitted up. I'll probably look dorky but that is okay. Anyway, I threw some pictures up of our training today. Enjoy!

Holding My Breath

-------***Radio Transmission***------

"I.C. this is Engine Crew 41..."


"Engine Crew 41 this is I.C. go ahead..."


"We are on the Bravo Charlie corner of the structure with downed fire fighter Holt who has a low air warning. Requesting Scott 30 minute tank and an extrication."


"You have a downed fire fighter Holt from Engine crew 41 in the Bravo Charlie corner, you're requesting a Scott 30 minute bottle and extrication..."


"Affirmative..."


"We are sending in a RIT team in with a 30 minute bottle and to get you guys out of there hold tight..."


"RIT Crew inbound with air bottle and extrication..."


"Affirmative..."


Laying there I did the best I could to control my breathing. After all once the air was gone I would either be sucking mask or worse. I could be sucking in the contaminants in the air around me. It seemed like forever as I laid there with my crew telling me that a Rapid Intervention Team was inbound on our location. I don't remember what happened. All I knew is I was down, couldn't move. They were there in what seemed like an eternity. I was told slow my breathing and as they undid my air pack I would at the count of three have to take a deep breath in and hold it as they shut off my oxygen and changed the air pack. I slowed my breathing down the best that I could, not knowing what was going on around me other than my pack moving around. The one fireman that told me to slow my breathing counted to three.


"1...2...3..." tapping my shoulder at each count.


I sucked in as much air in as I could until I couldn't pull in anymore. I pushed back the thoughts of not making it and not being able to breathe again into the back of my mind. I was going to get air again. I was going to be extricated. What seemed like minutes passed which in actuality was about 40 seconds, I was tapped and told to suck air in. I heaved a sigh of relief. I could breathe again. 

-----************-----

Then the training exercise was over. I got up and dusted the dirt of the engine bay off and popped off my mask. Our instructor Grady looked at all of us and said good job.

"Now that is what a RIT team response and bottle switch over is supposed to look like. Get used to radio chatter because that is what we will be practicing from now until you graduate..."

We had a test today that we were supposed to have on Wednesday. I rocked it and then we went over the chapters we are going to be tested on next week. After that we learned about the Incident Command System and general radio talk. Then we were set to our groups and we were told to have a man down so we could practice radio chatter and RIT team response involving a downed fire fighter with a low air warning. The downed fire fighter had to hold their breath until the next bottle was attached. I was the first downed man in my group because I can hold my breath the longest. We practiced that and rotated through that.

After that we left class with the announcement that we would be filling the smoke house with smoke on Monday. Which I am really excited for,. What I am not excited for is the Winter Storm Watch that will be taking place on Sunday.  This next week I start my CE hours for my EMT-B certification. I have 24 hours to do which I can do amongst six, four hour classes.

Other than that just doing the counting down thing until December. Stay tuned!