With all of the rain we have had, the grass has really had a chance to grow. Unfortunately for us, there is no contract company (YET) that mows the lawn. The Captain brought in a weed-eater, lawnmower, and blower...and it was our task to "beautify" the station. I even take the time to smile and wave to the camera. (With the Captain around, ALL safety rules must be followed. I had to wear safety glasses while mowing).
The neighborhood that the station backs up to is known as Dominion Valley. Last year, a local church partnered up with the area school and decided to hold a big easter egg hunt. We were "lucky" enough to be on duty when the second annual easter egg hunt was held.
Let me paint the picture for you....
The grounds are opened to anyone and everyone to come and participate. The preregistration was at approximately 4500 participants. At 4:00PM, a helicopter was going to arrive and drop eggs from the main cabin down onto the field in a designated area. The organizers would then make an announcement to unleash the kids. Why it is called a "hunt," I do not know....as it is more of a mad dash to collect the eggs. In all, there were 30,000 eggs scattered on the field.
Fortunately, there were no medical emergencies. The extent of our services were putting a band-aid on the skinned knees of two small boys.
I was also forced to take a picture with the Easter Bunny.....the joys of being the new guy / "rookie."
We decided this would be a good opportunity for us to take a candid photo. There are some members of our shift missing though...
SPRING IS OFFICIALLY HERE....
Many stations mark the beginning of Spring with their first Motorcycle Accident. We had the "opportunity" to mark the beginning of spring with an accident just down the road from the station. It appeared to be pretty minor in injuries. The rider was cut off by a car and laid his motorcycle down. He was conscious and talking to us. He did not appear to have any injuries except a deformity to his upper left leg. He was complaining of leg pain, so we treated a possible broken leg and immobilized both the rider and the leg onto a backboard. He was transported to a local area hospital where tests revealed he had a ruptured femoral artery. He was internally bleeding out and without the proper treatment, he could die by the end of the day. He was flown to another hospital where he was treated accordingly and to my knowledge is now recovering.
April 16th, 2007.
A house fire on Marsh Overlook claimed the life of a young firefighter by the name of Kyle Wilson.
“I need water (inaudible) 512 bucket. I need water, I’m burning up in here, I need water fast!”
What are apparently the last words of Kyle Wilson. A radio transmission from the Prince William County, VA firefighter at approximately 6:19 AM on April 16, 2007. About four minutes earlier Technician Wilson had alerted his fellow firefighters that he was trapped, with these words: “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, Tower 512 bucket, I’m trapped inside, I don’t know where I am, I’m somewhere in the stairwell, I need someone to come get me out.” By the time firefighters were able to get to Kyle Wilson it was too late.
The death of Technician I Kyle Wilson was overshadowed by the terrible shootings at Virginia Tech. His death received very little time on the news. The parents of Kyle Wilson and the Department have pledged together to learn from his death and not let his death become a memory.
On April 18th, 2009, the second annual Kyle Wilson Memorial 10K Walk/Run for Fitness was held. The purpose of the walk is to promote fitness (which Kyle was a big advocate of) as well as to raise money for the Kyle Wilson Scholarship. It is a scholarship awarded to students at George Mason University pursuing a degree in Fitness Training / Athletics.
This year was a huge turnout of people donating time, money, and energy to continue the efforts. By the end of the day, over $15,000 was raised for the scholarship. Janice and I ran the entire 10K, finishing in approximately 1 hour (10 minutes/mile).
With the firefighter combat challenge upon us, training has officially begun. While there is a requirement to PT every day (while on duty), I decided to create a small challenge course at the station using some of the props and tools we have available to us. Here is a small snapshot of the course....
1. Advance a 50 ft hoseline while flowing water.
2. Back the hoseline up, back to the starting position.
3. Strike the tire with a sledge hammer 15 times (simulating a forced entry)
4. Shoulder a highrise pack and carry it to the top of the hose tower
5. Raise a 45 lb hose pack to the top of the hose tower and then lower it
6. Raise a 25 lb hose pack to the top of the hose tower and then lower it
7. Shoulder the highrise pack and carry it back down
No comments:
Post a Comment