An upcoming training session in Flin Flon will show firefighters what to do when things go wrong.
The Flin Flon Fire Department [FFFD] will hold a fire ground survival course on Sept. 22 and 23, based out of the fire hall at 96 Hapnot Street. The course will provide hands-on and simulated practice for how firefighting personnel can escape from a hairy situation in the field.
“Basically, it will teach firefighters that are in a house fire or a structure fire how to rescue themselves – how to bail out of a window onto a ladder, how to get out of a basement of if you get trapped by debris on a roof, anything like that,” said Chad Cooper, Flin Flon fire chief.
Representatives from multiple fire departments in Manitoba and Saskatchewan have announced interest in the course.
One of the instructors will be Lionel Crowther, a master instructor with the International Association of Firefighters. In Feb. 2007, while with the Winnipeg Fire Department, Crowther was injured in a St. Boniface house fire that claimed the lives of two fire captains. Despite sustaining burns and other injuries, Crowther escaped the fire.
The course is part of an increased emphasis on special training for the FFFD, including some unconventional classes and thinking.
“I like thinking outside the box and going with non-traditional courses. This is one of them. It gives the guys some extra training,” said Cooper, who added he was pleased the trainers would make the trip north.
“It’s good that they’re willing to take this training on the road and bring it to communities like this that may not get to do it otherwise.”
Not long after the course, the fire department will host an open house event, where firefighters will open their facilities for public view.
“We’ll basically open our doors and show our trucks and equipment, what kind of improvements we’ve done, what technology we’ve purchased, what we’re looking for in the future, our challenges,” Cooper said.
“We’ll take people to the training grounds and show the improvements we’ve got there and the training program we’re starting here.”
