Academy uses real-life simulations to teach firefighting skills to teens

By: Haley Swaino Posted on: Thursday, July 18, 2024

NELSONVILLE, Ohio (WOUB) — The call came in: A fire was spreading through an apartment building and into the adjacent body shop. In seconds, nearly 50 trainees were suited up for fire and rescue.

Some rushed up the four-story apartment building steps. Others put out car fires and rescued victims.

Smoke billowed out of the windows as a fire truck pulled up to the building, its long ladder lined up with the third-story window to allow a single firefighter trainee to make the climb in.

The fire wasn’t real. It was a simulation, part of a weeklong training academy teaching fire and EMS skills to teenagers.

Many fire departments throughout Ohio rely on volunteers. The average age of these volunteers is 54, and the state is trying to find ways to draw in more young people, even before they’re out of high school.

“Career or volunteer, regardless, the number of firefighters that we draw from in the state of Ohio has dropped drastically over the years,” said Zachary Wolfe, director of the Ohio Youth Fire and EMS Training Academy.

That is a serious worry for today’s fire departments.

“It’s tough right now because the money’s not there or the initiative for people to do that,” said Gary Zehring, the academy’s youth commission director.

Zehring said the fact this year’s academy had 12 more students than last year means they’re heading in the right direction.

These 14 through 18-year-olds from all over the country took time out of their summer vacation to spend last week at the Hocking College Fire Training Center.

After working for hours in 90-degree heat, second-year trainee Cameron Bean said the physical demand is not the hard part.

“The mental aspect of it,” Bean said. “The mental drive to keep pushing forward and not giving up when you’re tired.”

First-year trainee Daisy Cyrus said simulated search and rescue was an exciting challenge for her, especially while blindfolded and attached to an oxygen tank.

“Whenever you’re blindfolded you have to use your senses,” Cyrus said. “There was a part where there was wires and you had to strategize how to put your pack on the ground while pulling yourself back to get through the wires without catching on anything.”

 Cyrus comes from a family of firefighters and is eager to join their legacy.

“And then when I came here, I basically learned everything that I need to know,” she said.

Led by the Ohio State Firefighters Association, trainees learned water and hose management, ladders training, search and rescue, and practiced relying on oxygen tanks to breathe.

Wolfe said that seeing the students’ growth from Sunday’s arrival to Friday’s simulation tests was amazing.

“You see them developing,” Wolfe said. “They’re clicking. You know, the communication, the comradery, the fact that they look out for each other. It’s fun to watch as senior staff.