Base firefighters train with local firefighters, enhance skills

Published Nov. 22, 2006
By Senior Airman James Bolinger
436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Two firefighters respond to a 911 call and enter a house with smoke pouring out the windows. They shuffle forward on their knees holding a charged fire hose until one points out a couch that is engulfed in flames.

The two aim the hose at the burning divan and one yells, "Utilities?"
"Off," replies a voice from another room.

The firefighters attempt to extinguish the couch but the wall of flames grows quickly filling the entire room. One of the firefighters yells, "Get out, now!"

This situation is a danger firefighters face every time they enter a house, but now they can train for these hazards and more through augmented reality.

"The system is called a Harmless Hazard Training Facility, which means you can't get hurt using it," said William Walker Jr., Delaware State Fire School instructor.

Originally designed for the Navy, the trainer is owned by the Delaware State Fire School and is only the second one ever made in the U.S. It is made available to any fire station in Delaware that wishes to use it, said Mr. Walker.

Inside of the trainer are a couch, bathroom and bedroom with minimal furnishings. The teams wear full gear including a simulated Self Contained Breathing Apparatus.

The mask, however, has a small video screen instead of visors, and cameras are attached to the front of the camera feeding information into the computer program.

"We can simulate more than 15 scenarios, including HAZMAT electrical fires," said Mr. Walker. "We can control the smoke layer and size of the flames; we can even move the fire around and add sparks."

One team who entered the trainer suffered a simulated electrocution when they didn't ask if the utilities had been turned off.

After firefighters have completed a training scenario, the program gives the team their total time inside the trainer, the time it took to put out the fire and how many gallons of water used.

"This trainer stresses communication," said Staff. Sgt. Charles Fish, 436th Civil Engineer Squadron fire department. "It's one of the best tools a firefighter can have to successfully complete a fire operation."

The trainer is especially important for new members coming out of technical school, said Master Sgt. Willie Wardy, the 436th CES fire department assistant chief of training.
"It is important for the new guys straight out of tech school to learn how we operate here," said Sergeant Fish. "We operate similarly, but every fire department is a little different. They need to get used to the way we do things."

The base expects to utilize the trainer again sometime in the spring when they get another group of new technical-school students, said Sergeant Wardy.

The trainer is just one of the many ways Dover Air Force Base's Fire Department works hand-in-hand with their civilian counterparts throughout the state of Delaware.