BAKER — Some dedicated young colleagues join the Baker Fire District's certified firefighters when engines leave Station 20.
During a blaze, junior firefighters handle logistics, swapping out oxygen bottles, and performing basic first aid and CPR, freeing up their certified partners to fight the flames.
“They’re just like brother and sister firefighters,” junior firefighter coordinator Lt. Mark McKenzie said. “The only thing we have to exclude them from is actual firefighting. They have to stay out of the danger zone.”
Until they’re 18. But by then, the juniors will have all prerequisite certifications to begin certified firefighter training.
“Our job is to get them ready now,” Fire District Chief Dusty Talbert said. “All that first aid, CPR, all that will be done. So as soon as they hit 18, they’ll be ready.”
The junior firefighter team currently has six to 10 members ranging from sixth grade to high school seniors.
On Feb. 11, the juniors took seats in the station conference room with their older colleagues as Capt. Tim Busby taught a course on arson recognition.
“This is a group of hard-working kids,” Baker Fire District Commissioner Ralph Ellis said. “We’re glad to support them. They’re not just out for fun and games. They’re learning a lot.”
Dressed in helmets, boots, protective coats and overalls, the kids fell in with Baker’s older firefighters and approached the scene of a “suspicious fire.”
Busby introduced the scenario: “Earl Mannequin” — the department’s CPR and first aid dummy — built a house for his mother, who allegedly flicked a lit cigarette into a trash can and started a fire. Earl was now trying to collect insurance.
Junior and senior firefighters investigated the site’s exterior before examining the building, a wooden shed about 10 feet square constructed behind the fire station.
The firefighters saw various clues suggesting Earl may have lit the fire himself. These included two ignition sources, fire “trailers” caused by dribbled accelerant, and scorching inconsistent with the fire's reported cause.
Such weekly drills aren’t the juniors’ only experience. M.E. Cates, a Baker School junior, attended Volunteer Weekend at Northwest Florida State College, where, being certified in CPR and first aid, she checked blood pressure and vital signs after attendees left a smoke-filled training facility.
Ariel Peterson, a Crestview High junior, recently attended training on how to knock escape routes through a donated mobile home's walls and floors.
David joined firefighters at crash victim extrication training and watched them use the Jaws of Life to cut open a car.
“They’re going to be our replacements,” Talbert said. “The certified firefighters aren’t getting any younger. It’s good we have these kids coming up.”
“Even if they never become firefighters, they’re giving back to the community right now,” McKenzie said.
What: Baker Fire District Junior Firefighters weekly training
When: 6:30 p.m. Thursdays
Where: Baker Fire District Station 20, 1375 19th St.
Notes: The program is open to any middle or high school student regardless of Baker residency. Call 537-2487 for more details.
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This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Baker junior firefighters gain experience for certification (VIDEO)