Behind the Badge
Adelynn Flesch, 8, of Anaheim learned something new at this year’s Fire Service Day, which was held recently at the North Net Training Center in Anaheim.
Hosted by Anaheim Fire & Rescue, along with the Garden Grove and Orange fire agencies, the Oct. 1 event was a chance for the public to get an up-close look at equipment used to battle blazes and save lives, as well as learn about fire safety.
While watching a demonstration that showed how rapidly a fire can engulf a home, Adelynn learned that shutting doors can help prevent the fire from spreading.
“If you let air get into the fire, it’s going to get bigger,” Adelynn said. “So when you get out, close the door.”
Orange City Firefighter Cole Ingle, left, and Anaheim Fire & Rescue Engineer Neil Powers extinguish a wooden shed set on fire as a demonstration for visitors, far right, attending Fire Service Day 2016 at the North Net Training Center in Anaheim on Oct. 1.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Adelynn listened as Tim Adams, Anaheim Fire & Rescue battalion chief and a nationally recognized expert on fire containment, explained that the temperature of a house fire can hit 2,000 degrees, causing structures to collapse quickly.
The hundreds of attendees who turned out could inspect urban search and rescue vehicles, fire engines that pump water and fire trucks with ladders.
“It’s amazing,” Adelynn said. “They never let you get close to the vehicles. You always have to stay back. But here, you can go inside them.”
Attendees saw firefighters rappel down the side of a four-story building and watched an extrication demonstration in which firefighters used hydraulic rescue tools to slice the roof off a car.
Mason Faulkner, 7, of Riverside, uses a pulley to lift a fire hose during Fire Service Day 2016.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
“It’s an opportunity for us to interact with the community and also showcase our ability when it comes to fire service, whether it’s fire-fighting, vehicle extrications on heavy rescue traffic collisions, urban search and rescue and wildland fires,” said Anaheim PD Sgt. Daron Wyatt, Anaheim Fire & Rescue’s public information officer.
The number of agencies on hand for Fire Service Day also shows how several departments “work seamlessly together” to protect the public, Wyatt said.
The service day also was an opportunity for residents to schedule home visits from firefighters and inspectors to install smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors free of charge.
Attendees also could learn more about Anaheim Fire & Rescue’s Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Services program, called RACES, as well as the Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT.
Along with the equipment and services showcased during Fire Service Day, Battalion Chief Adams wanted the public to know something else.
“It’s important to know that your firefighters are here protecting you, your community, your loved ones and your homes in your own community,” Adams said. “We are here 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.”
Garden Grove Firefighter Corey Lindsay, center, uses the Jaws of Life as he works with other Garden Grove firefighters during a car rescue demonstration.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Garden Grove firefighters take a vehicle apart with the Jaws of Life during a car rescue demonstration.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Firefighter Francisco Baez of the Fullerton Fire Department rappels down the tower at North Net Training Center in Anaheim on Fire Service Day on Oct. 1.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
Garden Grove firefighters remove the top of a vehicle during a car rescue demonstration.
Photo by Steven Georges/Behind the Badge OC
