Firefighters get new training opportunities in Charlotte County
Charlotte County
Flames shoot from the plane, whose engine is a fireball.
As the fire spreads to the main cabin, firefighters rush inside the plane in an attempt to put out the fire in the cockpit.
This is an intensive training designed to help the crew prepare for something they hope will never happen.
“We’re training here for ARFF, which stands for aircraft and is for rescue firefighters,” said Todd Dunn of the Charlotte County Fire Department and EMS. .
The plane’s wingspan is 64 feet long, and its training benefits are immense.
The Lakeland Fire Department is the first company to utilize the newly constructed Air Rescue and Firefighter Simulator located at the Charlotte County Public Safety Training Center.
According to Charlotte County Fire Department battalion commander Larry Rippel, the simulator is the size of a real airplane, so it’s useful for first responders.
“So they have that size, so they can do what’s going to be muscle memory. They can actually get into the aircraft, get under the aircraft, and figure out what it takes to get around the aircraft.” You can see it,” Lippel said.
The aircraft has four engines and different door types. Dunn says it’s a more realistic approach to training.
“This aircraft is designed to simulate what you would find at most airports,” says Dunn.
Lt. Christopher Caustic of Lakeland Fire feels that the simulation has taken training to a whole new level.
“We do wheel fires, engines, cockpit galleries and fuel spills on both sides,” said Caustic.
Fighting an airplane fire is different than fighting a house or building fire.
“The type of fuel you have will most likely have far more people than homes or schools or structures,” Dunn said.
Thirty years ago, aviation firefighting training didn’t look like this.
For one thing, they didn’t have brand new facilities, they were just pouring jet fuel on the ground, setting fires, and having firefighters extinguish them.
It wasn’t very environmentally friendly. Now they use much cleaner propane.
“We don’t get that kind of carcinogenic burn. Then we can have a clean shower, but it’s definitely good for our health, too.”
The water used is recycled and stored in tanks for the next training session.
https://www.winknews.com/2022/12/08/firefighters-get-new-training-opportunity-in-charlotte-county/ Firefighters get new training opportunities in Charlotte County