Day 119 - Goodbye For Now....

Today was another low key day. We spent the morning enjoying a few EMT videos. We got a visit from the Chief. He talked a little bit about graduation and our future assignments. I pulled plaque detail at graduation. Another cadet and I will be handing the plaques out to the Chiefs.

After lunch we covered Weapons of Mass Destruction and did a few scenarios.

We made one more trek to Ralph's place for a quick but effective Kettle Bell workout...our last scheduled PT of the academy....

Tomorrow is the LAST day classroom. 120 days of classroom...done!!! Three weeks will remain....

Day 118 - Where are we?

Today started out with dress outs in the gym...actually we only did one. We then did our favorite Philadelphia drill. Our group did fairly well.

We then waited in our old classroom for our one on one insurance meeting. When that failed we headed up stairs for a quick lecture on Ambulance Care and gaining entry.

After lunch and our "Fart" ice cream, we watched the documentary dealing with the firefighters of Ladder 1 during 9-11. I had seen it before, but always a great watch.

We finished up the day covering geriatrics and witnessed two scenarios.

I also had my one on one insurance meeting and took part in a wacky scenario involving a cadet dressed in drag...a very interesting day.

Day 115, 116 & 117 - A Stick and the LAST Classroom Week

Day 115 - With Friday came another skills session. This time, we all had to catch a fire hydrant....(this meant another ride on a fire truck). I went on the first truck and had no problem with the hydrant. We did a few other activities for the camera (running the tower, flipping over a car, another car fire, and a few other things).

After a Krystal Lunch we did skills, scheduled our ambulance clinicals, and I got a second IV stick. Shaking and all, I easily got the vein.

Day 116 - Monday...the start of the last week of classroom. We took our final test, and we all did well. A positive note, no one failed a test. We went the entire academy, and no one failed a weekly test. We are the 1st academy to accomplish that!!!

We had lecture in the morning and skills in the afternoon. A few folks in the class had to retake a Haz-mat test...and were ready to do so...but had it canceled at the last moment...

Day 117 - Not a ton to report. Lecture in the morning, skills in the afternoon. We had Ralph and he had us carrying weights over our heads, doing pushups on basketballs, and dragging weights with our feet...

Tomorrow...dress outs

Day 112, 113 & 114 - The end is near

Day 112 - Not only was the day IV stick day, but also 1 month till graduation. We spent most of the day sticking each other with 20 gauge needles. I managed to get my sticks in...two to be exact. The first one missed, but the second one brought out the blood.

My partner stuck me twice, but failed to get the IV started.

Ralph showed up at the end of the day for PT. We did some ab exercises. This involved us getting in various awkward positions, and as one cadet called said...he felt like an upside down turtle....

Day 113 - The morning started as usual...Dress out drill in the morning. This time we were left to ourselves to do head to head dress outs. Not one of my favorites, but we made it interesting. We had a prelims round. While I didn't win my prelim, I did improve my time to 1:18...picking up a whole 20 seconds. I also was not the slowest in the class this time.

We then had lecture (covering abdominal injuries) and continued throughout the afternoon doing various scenarios.

Day 114 - Today started out with lecture (abdominal injuries & skeletal injuries. Lt. wanted me to demonstrate the Traction splint. Problem was, is that is had never been put together. So after assembling it, I figured out how it worked, and away went the demonstration.

After our group lunch to Applebee's, we did skill stations (splinting) and prepared for Ralph.

Ralph had a simple course of 50 kettle bell swings, 10 pushups...followed by "swimming" across the gym floor, stopping four times at various intervals (accomplishing 50 total pushups)...then we had to do 100 rope swings....

All in a days work....

Tomorrow leaves only two Classroom friday's left...The END IS NEAR!

Day 109, 110, & 111 -

Day 109 - Another day in EMT. Ralph had us and we did rope swings for 20 minutes our so.

Day 110 - It was Friday and time for something different. We started the morning out with a few drills. Our group had to raise a ladder and do a fifth floor search. We spent the rest of the day working on Bleeding and Shock management.

Day 111 - A new week, and only 5 weeks left. We started the day with a test. We quickly moved on to IV therapy. After a nice lunch time, we all practice our sticks on the fake arms.

Tomorrow is the real deal....

Day 108: Here we go again

Today we started the day with dress outs. This time, we all had new gear. It is going to take some getting used to. Zippers, Velcro, the stiffness. We did one regular dress out and then head to head. I didn't do so well. 1 minute 39 seconds....well under the two minute mark, but the longest of the class. O-well...it doesn't really matter anyway. Firefighters rarely get ready that quickly...

We moved on to OB/GYN in class. This was mostly a chapter on pregnancy and delivering babies. We took a break to get and fix our gear issues. I just needed another set of gloves and I got them today.

We took another break for lunch. This time we headed to a Chinese buffet in Hixson. Not a bad lunch for $5.

The afternoon consisted of assessments and getting batteries for our various SCBA pieces.

All in all a good day. Tomorrow we move to trauma...

Day 107 : Another one down

Today was an interesting day. While most of the day was spent going over Abuse, we did take time to remember our latest casualty. We are now down to 20 in our class. 20 cadets and 9 sworn firefighters will hopefully graduate on the the 20th of May.

We ate lunch at Moe's.

PT was interesting. More adventures for the camera. It was one of Ralph's station drills...swing 55 lbs kettle bells 50 times, pull ourselves across the gym using rope, swing dumbells 25 times (each arm) and do a seal walk pushup combo station.

Tomorrow we have dress outs in our new gear...should be interesting!!

I would also like to congratulate all the soon to be fathers. We have two girls, one boy, and one unknown. Who knows, these unborn children may be the next firefighters for the City of Chattanooga...

Day 106 - A Productive Day

We started the day right at 8. Our first task of the day was to study and pass an EMT exam. We all did. Next we had to get our turn-out gear ready to be turned back in. I gathered up my pants, took off the suspenders, and placed it all on top of my bag. Once we had that completed, Captain had a few words for us in the gym. It was punishment day for a misplaced piece of gear. Seems Captain didn't like my suggestion of Side-straddle-hops (Jumping Jacks), so the guilty cadet had to do 50 push-ups. After the task was completed, we headed upstairs for lecture.

After lecture we headed to ASR in East Ridge. There we tried on our Class A pants, shirt and coat. We were also given our hat (which mine didn't fit), dress shoes, station shoes, and dress pants. We then headed over to a lunch buffet....it was very good.



After taking the long way back to the training center, we headed to the gym to trade in our old turnouts for brand new ones.



The new turn outs fit well. It will take some getting used to. I no longer have to worry about buttons or snaps....just a zipper and velcro...

The rest of the day was spent on scenarios. I did stop by and pick up the kids in my new turnouts. They loved it (and so did I).

I also passed my two Hazmat Tests...which is a relief in the sense that I will not have to retake them.

Day 105 - A Nice Surprise

Day 105 - We started the day getting ready in the gym for dress outs. We got our gear and set up in the gym. After a few minutes, the police came in and booted us out. Captain told us to put our stuff back in the resource building, and head up to the classroom. We did as we were told. A few minutes later we dove into Environmental Issues. After 20 minutes or so of lecture, we were interrupted for...and guesses??? Yes, that's right dress outs. We headed back out to the resource building to get our gear. Instead of the gym, we did dress outs outside. We did three drills...all three went very well and on the last one, I was one of the first done. Having the new spider on my mask really made the difference....NO MORE TUCKING!!!



After dress outs, we put our stuff away, and headed to Supply. There we received our Class B uniforms....VERY EXCITED!!! Katrina liked it as well and took my picture.

The rest of the morning was spent on lecture. We took a break for lunch, and finished up the day outside doing Scenarios.

A very awesome day.....My name on a fire shirt.

Monday we get our NEW TURNOUT GEAR and we try on our Class A's!!!

Things are shaping up very nice!!!

Day 103 & 104 - Stinking up the Turnouts

One thing I think we all agree on....Thank god we did our Fire training in November, January and February.....

Day 103 - We started the day off with dress out drills. One two minute dress out, followed by a trip up the tower, through the window, and through the tower. We then undressed, and did it all again. This time we added a trip through part of the confinement tubes. We had to exit the tubes by pulling ourselves out of a manhole.

Once we de-funked ourselves, headed upstairs for some classroom training on Allergic reactions. After lunch we did assessments for the rest of the day. I practiced administering shots.

Day 104 - The entire morning was spent on poisons and toxins. We concluded the morning with a quick power point on Venomous snakes. After lunch we did assessments.

PT was the same as Tuesday, except this time it was recorded for the video. So to ham up the video, we performed in our turnouts.

Day 102 - The Furniture Moving, Cursing, Care Providing Cadets

The day started with a trip over to Administration. Lieutenant gave us a pre-warning that our day may NOT be as good as we were hoping for. Our walk over to admin was a quazi-nervous walk, and our sitting in the War Room didn't help matters any. But all we had to do is move office furniture from one room to another. I even helped set up the computers in the new offices. I guess old habits die hard.

After our walk back to the training center, some of us took a bathroom break, others headed back up to the classroom. I took a potty break. I mention this, because this break is going to be important....read on.

Once back in the classroom, we hit the books and started altered mental status. After about twenty minutes or so, lieutenant had to take a five minute break. After about 10 minutes or so, we were greeted by Captain and another Lieutenant. The asked us if anyone had been in the bathroom rattling of curse words. None of us recalled doing that, so........we all ended up lined up in the gym. 1st round - twenty pushups - no one spoke up. 2nd round - twenty pushups - Still no one talking. 3rd round twenty-five squat thrusts - no one talking. 4th round twenty-five squat thrusts - still no one talking. We were then left alone for five minutes to discuss our situation. 5th round - twenty five mountain climbers...no one confesses. 6th round - another set of 25 mtn. climbers...no one spoke. We were then sent to a brief lunch.

After lunch, we continued on with Altered Mental Status. I was chosen to do the last assessment of the day. As everyone crowded around, lieutenant received a phone call. Seemed someone needed assistance in the bathroom downstairs. Five of us and lieutenant grabbed the EMT bag and headed down. We all ended up assisting the patient. It was a great learning experience....

PT was fun as well. We went outside to the drill ground. Ralph had us stretch out a 100 foot section of 4 inch hose by running it down to a set cone. After we reached the cone, we pulled the hose down towards us. Once the hose was past the cone, we dropped the hose and ran up and down the tower. We did this three times.

Tomorrow should be interesting...We were told to bring extra clothes because the 1st hour of work, may be a tough one....Time shall see

Day 99, 100 & 101 - All in a Days Work

Day 99 - EMT all day...We covered Patient Assessments and Respiratory Distress. As EMTs for the fire department, we are allowed to give 2.5 m/ls of albuterol. We discussed the method of administrating, and well as other Respiratory issues. No PT.

Day 100 - A special day. My birthday. We spent the morning in our turnouts. Each academy has a video created for them, about them. Our videographer needed a few extra shots. We were all divided into three groups and given tasks. My group was sent over to the vehicles. Part of our group worked on extrications. The rest of us prepped a car for a car fire. I'll be honest...I stayed low key during the extrication shots. I wanted to do the car fire. So when the time came around, four us loaded up on a fire truck driven by the captain. He pulled us around back, turned on all the lights, sirens and horns, mashed the gas and took off towards the fire. The first two cadets jumped off and hooked up the hydrant. My partner and I took a short ride to the car fire, jumped off the truck, grabbed the hose, and went to town. It was a fun way to end the morning.

We spent the rest of the day working on patient assessments.

For additional video footage, we were sent to Ralph's. There he introduced us to the tires. Three BIG tires. The first station involved us flipping over a 200 pound tire (with one arm), jumping through it, and then flipping it back over (using the opposite arm). At the next station we flipped over a 400 pound tire (one at a time in groups of six) up and down the gym floor. The last station did the same exercise as above, but upped the tire weight to 500 pounds.

Our second round of tires had us flipping over and jumping through each tire in sequence. So each set consisted of 3 flips and 3 jumps. We did 3 or 4 sets a piece.

It was a great way to end the week.

Day 101: Not much to the day. We took an EMT test, talked about Cardiovascular issues, did a few assessments, and then had a nice run at the Riverpark. A very relaxed Monday....