New firefighters got an opportunity to experience a burning building under controlled conditions during last week’s training exercise.Firefighters from all over Wilkes County and beyond got an opportunity for realistic training recently as Washington Fire Department trainers used a donated house to burn under controlled conditions.More than 50 firefighters from every volunteer fire department in the county, and several firefighters from Oglethorpe County, gathered on Rusher Street in Washington last Tuesday to train on a house that had been purchased by the city as part of the Southwest Washington Redevelopment Plan. Main Street Manager David Jenkins said that the redevelopment plan called for the house to be demolished, but allowing the firefighters to conduct a training burn provided one final good use for the building.
Under the direction of senior Washington Fire Department officers, fires were lit using wooden pallets and kerosene in the home’s rear room. Firefighters, divided into three-person hose teams, practiced entering the burning building, knocking down the flames, then safely leaving the building.
As one hose team battles flames inside the house, training officer Lt. Greg Scott briefs the next hose team preparing to go in.“We have several new firefighters in training now, and this allowed them to experience the flash-over conditions they would find in a burning building for the first time, but in a safer environment,” said Chief Alan Poss.During last week’s drill, the hose teams made repeated entries into the burning rooms to put down the flames to a certain point, then WFD trainers would stoke the flames back to life for the next round. After more than two hours of practice that saw each hose team make repeated tactical entries to the burning house, trainers extinguished the flames, saving the structure for another drill.
“We saw that the house was still in good shape, structurally,” Poss said, “so we got the okay from the city to come back and drill again here and provide more training for our firefighters.”
The Rusher Street house will be the scene of a second drill next Monday night, training officer Lt. Greg Scott said. The drill will provide more hands-on experience for firefighters, then be allowed to burn down. Firefighters will stand by to ensure that the flames do not spread and that the remains of the fire are properly overhauled.
The aim of this and other fire training is not only to save lives and property, but to eventually improve the ISO insurance rating for the whole county, Poss said. In 2006, Washington’s in-town fire protection rating was raised from a Class 4 to a Class 3, putting it in a class equal with most Atlanta suburbs and far better than most other small cities.
