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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on November 26, 2013 at 12:28am

You sound eager, that is good, but don't try and go overboard, work in moderation. You state you are new and part of the job for about a year, so hone the skills you should be expected to know. You don't have to train "hard", there are many things you can hone on your own. Know where all the tools are on the rig, know how each one works, know how to perform the service work/maintanence on them. Some things you can practice on are ladder raises, hose pulls and stowing, catch hydrants. Learn the district, streets, do simple size ups of structures, etc. There are plenty of videos and training tips one can search on youtube, etc that you can look into.

 

You can always ask if others want to do something, or if you would like to work on something, such as ladder raises or hose pulls, ask someone nicely if they are willing to help you out with something, or if they would be willing to go over something with you. Be willing to relax. While most people may not want to train as hard as you, be cautious of how you may come across.

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Permalink Reply by Travis Skinner on November 26, 2013 at 2:20pm

What state are you in?
I know in Illinois we have all kinds of FREE training opportunities through the Illinois Fire Service Institute.

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Permalink Reply by Norm Tindell on November 27, 2013 at 11:50am

Seek advice from your department's training officer and your company officers and first pursue Firefighter I. There are lots of online resources and schools you can attend in person, but like John says, don't get off the path to FFI until you get your feet solidly on the ground with the introductory stuff.

Best of luck and stay safe.

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Permalink Reply by steve hutchinson on December 11, 2013 at 3:00pm

practice in the hall wearing scba using a bag over your mask to simulate smoke.  Hide a training dummy in the hall and try to locate it with a blind search.  Not sure what your laws dictate but In Canada you can't technically done and use scba unless you have your level 1 fire.  But practice at the hall is invaluable, you can simulate many situations like manoeuvring in a restricted space by crawling under a truck with scba pushed in front of you while you crawl under the truck then when you get to the other side try to put your scba back on while still on your back.  The whole time stay on air just take your pack off to get under the truck.  This is one way we practised to get familiar with scba.

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Permalink Reply by Karl Grath on June 11, 2015 at 5:20pm

Good for you for being such a go-getter. A good place to start is by acquiring some discounted IFSTA textbooks, some instructional DVDs that familiarize you with scenarios, and some workbooks and practice tests to really prepare you. Other than that, start a good workout regimen that has some cardio but supports a lot of weight training. You're going to be hauling heavy gear. If you have access to items like ladders to practice with, great. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Austin on June 14, 2015 at 3:49pm

Try smoke reading, door and window breaching, Firefighter down, and egress from a fire.

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