Fire Ops 101 gives Allegheny officials a feel for what firemen go through
Allegheny County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael E. McCarthy always wondered what it would be like to be a firefighter, racing into a burning building with 100 pounds of gear and feeling your way around in billowing smoke.
On Saturday, he and about 25 other politicians, city and county employees and news media representatives found out during the second annual Fire Ops 101 training session at the county Fire Academy in North Park.
"These firefighters are the real deal," McCarthy said as he completed the grueling six-hour event. "When it's time to go, it's just as I imagined it would be. It helps for an outsider like me to feel the heat and see what it's like in there. And I always knew their equipment cost a lot of money, but when you're in the middle of a fire, do you want to know you're using equipment from the lowest bidderâ¢
"You want the best chance of making it out of there, right⢠Now I know how it feels."
Pittsburgh Firefighter Ralph Sicuro, recording secretary of the International Association of Firefighters Union Local No. 1, said the training session was developed to let the politicians who allocate money and reporters who cover firefighters see what they deal with on the job.
Organizers hope the event helps to educate the public about the importance of fire safety, smoke detectors and planned escape routes, Sicuro said.
"They get to smell the smoke, feel the fire and see what the adrenaline rush is like," Sicuro said. "It's a controlled situation but also a way for them to see what our job is like."
Firefighters from the city, Swissvale, McKeesport, Wilkinsburg and Pittsburgh International Airport led participants through the course, which included learning how to safely erect a 24-foot ladder on the side of a two-story building and running four flights of stairs while carrying a fire hose.
The participants, including Pittsburgh Councilman Bruce Kraus, District Judge Ronald Costa, representatives from City Council President Doug Shields' office and KDKA reporter Sonni Abatta, were provided bunker coats, pants, boots, helmets, gloves, oxygen tanks and masks. The equipment costs about $2,500 per firefighter, said Al Wickline, administrator of the academy.
The academy trains about 8,800 firefighters each year and is responsible for training and certification for the 203 fire departments in the county.
Gerald J. Tedesco Jr., president of McKeesport Firefighters Union Local 10, said six firefighters from his department helped with the training. The Wilkinsburg fire department brought six firefighters, along with borough Councilwoman Vanessa McCarthy-Johnson.
"Growing up, a house across the street burned and since then, I've always had a fear of fire, which I wanted to conquer today," McCarthy-Johnson said. "After going through this experience, I'm at a loss for words. This was tremendous.
"I always knew this was a hard job, but I know so much more now and I'm determined we need to make sure we support our firefighters and find the money to not only get them more men and women on the department, but the best equipment possible."
The exercise involved sending the participants into a burning building and having them experience a "flashover" inside a simulator purchased for $50,000 about six years ago.
It is one of only two in the state and allows firefighters to experience one of the most deadly phenomena in their profession: the nearly simultaneous ignition of all combustible material in an enclosed area. The simulator places participants and firefighters in a metal structure where the heat reaches 1,200 degrees -- to learn how to fight a fire and stay safe.
"This has gotten so much worse in recent years, because almost everything in your home is not made of natural fibers," said Pittsburgh fire Capt. James Petruzzi of Engine 8 in East Liberty. "That means fire burns really hot and really fast, and if a firefighter's more than six feet inside a room when a flashover occurs, they aren't coming back out."
Pittsburgh fire Lt. Stephen Jasper of Engine 15 in Larimer said having civilians experience the flashover simulator mimics the reality of the job.
"If this was a real fire, it would be much more intense, but this is pretty realistic," said Jasper, an 11-year-veteran.
Kraus, who participated for the second year and brought two staff members, said there's a big difference between watching firefighters battle flames in your neighborhood and trying it yourself.
"This is such an incredible experience," said Kraus, who chairs City Council's Public Safety Committee. "I formed an amazing respect for what firefighters do. You can't understand what they go through until you do it. It isn't easy."
