Let's Get You Up to Speed (part 10).....

I had many exciting times with the O'Fallon Fire Protection District. Three events really stick out in my mind, and are ones I will never forget.

The first one was on a weekend and took place at a Wal-Mart Parking Lot. We had a Fire Appreciation Day for the community. All the fire trucks showed up. We had the smoke house going for the kids. There was a moc traffic drill. And they even had the emergency "Life Flight" Helicopter land in the parking lot. And while I had a very small part, I still felt like a firefighter. Katrina and the Kids showed up (Kolsten in his firefighter outfit) and I felt proud to have my family there. I ended the day on a ride along with 9110. We drove out to Station 2 and then headed to Applebee's for dinner. There I had my first firefighter"perk" as the manger cut our bill in half to show his appreciation. That day showed me that an important part of a firefighter's job is to server the community. Treat them well, and they will treat you the same.

The second event was an overnight "manning" of Station 2 (our volunteer station). We all met at Station 1. We prepared 9110 for its trip over to Station 2. Because there were more folks going then seats on the truck, we had to take department vehicles. We packed our gear and away we went. Because I had an EMT-B license, I was put in a station vehicle. The theory was, should we get a call, the EMT vehicle could get ahead of the firetruck, and be first on the scene (to aid in medical help). We spent most of the night eating, playing cards, and watching really old firefighter movies (they happened to be on TV). I also spent a ton of time getting to know the folks I had been working with. In the morning we packed up, cleaned all three trucks, and headed back to Station 1. While we didn't have any calls that evening, that 14 hour shift showed me that firefighting is not an individual challenge, it's a team effort. And getting to know your team is vital if you want to succeed.

The third and final event was the most memorable moment of my days with the O'Fallon Fire Protection district. An old farm house was donated to all the fire protection districts of St. Charles County. As part of continuing education, the house was being used to practice certain firefighter drills (venting, rope rescue from the second floor, roof venting, etc.) Because of the size of our group, and that most of us from O'Fallon were probationary members, our captains thought it would be a good idea for us to practice first response, and let the older volunteers tackle the more advanced techniques. I remember it was raining, and had been raining for some time. We all got in our turnouts as soon as we got out of the vehicles. As we got close to the house, all you could hear was the sound of chain saws and people yelling out orders. It was a little overwhelming. Our captain had us break into groups of four. As we were waiting for our instructions, we were told to take pike poles and break out windows. After 15 minutes or so, it was my groups turn to go. We were given instructions. Each one of us would have a position. We would have a captain, a nozzle man, and two firefighters to bring up the rear. We would then have a black out placed over our mask (taking away our sight). We then would enter the house and start our search and rescue. Our captain selected our ranks, and selected me as the "captain". By this point we were in full turnouts (coats, pants, gloves, etc.) and we had our SCBAs on (but with no air), and air tanks on our backs. My captain grabbed me by the arm and started leading me around the house. He pointed out locations that I would check as I circled the house. He also pointed out areas in the yard and had me shine my light on every window checking for smoke and/or people. After the near sprint around the house I rejoined my "squad" and waited for our turn to enter the house. By this point, I was struggling to catch my breath. In fact, I was in near panic. I tried to relax, but the more I thought about it, the more I wanted out of that mask. Right as I reached to pull it off, Aaron came over and started asking me if I was ready to enter the house. I said yes, and he proceeded to place the blackout over my mask. As it went dark and my vision went away, I found myself not thinking of my breathing, but the task at hand. It was like someone hit the reset button on my brain. I needed to find and rescue the baby trapped in side the burning house. We were told to proceed. I gave the order to get on air, and we all clicked our regulators in place. The rush of that cold compressed air on your lungs was amazing. We entered the house on our hands and knees and stayed to the right. With the nozzle man in the lead, all four of us stayed within touching distance. I leaned on the objects to my right, while feeling with my hands to the left. I reached and finally grabbed what we were looking for...our baby (actually an ax). I gave the order to head back out. We reversed our direction and followed the hose out. Once on the outside, our captain gave us our critique and showed us our route through the house. We then waited as the other groups did their training.

That evening showed me that I can do this job. I can be a firefighter. I overcame my anxiety and completed the task at hand. I saved the ax. And while it seemed such a small task, it was a much bigger deal to me. I knew that I was ready. I just needed a chance.

That chance would come soon enough....