Prospective firefighters learn, practice essentials at helipad
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL - Students, instructors, and fire personnel at a firefighting essentials class at the Shenandoah helipad on April 21, 2024.
SHENANDOAH – “You may be the supply that saves somebody’s life.”
That was part of a lesson given to the next generation of our region’s bravest as they took their firefighting essentials class on the road Saturday morning.
Prospective volunteer firefighters from Shenandoah, Mahanoy City, Sheppton and more spent much of the morning at the Shenandoah helipad on East Washington Street gaining first-hand, hands-on experience in water supply operations.
Since February, the students had been learning in a classroom setting at the Sheppton-Oneida Volunteer Fire Company.
The Sentinel was there as students practiced laying a supply line from a Shenandoah Fire Department engine.
Students also learned how to use other water sources, like creeks, ponds, or portable ponds deployed at scenes, to provide a water supply at a fire scene.
Instructors emphasized the critical importance of obtaining a water supply in a firefight.
Firefighting essentials is the first step in volunteer firefighter training and one of many offered by the Schuylkill County Training Academy.
Northern Schuylkill County is served exclusively by volunteer firefighters and are always looking for more help. If interested, stop by your local firehouse.
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