CAPE MAY, N.J. – Members of the Coast Guard Fire Department, stationed onboard the Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, and members of local fire departments conducted fire suppression training, Monday.
Using a forced entry simulator, members of the Villas, Cape May and Rio Grande Fire Departments worked along side the CGFD to gain access to a space that was on fire. The firemen also trained on how to safely advance charged hoses through narrow passageways in order to suppress a fire and horizontal ventilation techniques.
“This training is important,” said CGFD Asst. Fire Chief, Ryan Geraghty. “Teamwork and coordination, ahead of time, could mean the difference between life and death.”
It is a National Fire Protection Association requirement for fire departments to participate in a minimum of two live burns a year, but the CGFD has conducted more than the standard minimum.
“This is our tenth burn this year,” said Geraghty.
This training is important to maintaining an efficient working relationship with the CGFD’s civilian counter parts. The CGFD has established a mutual-support agreement between the Coast Guard and Cape May County. Resources are made available to support either the municipalities or the training center in the event of an emergency.
"We respond to their emergencies, and they respond to ours,” Geraghty said. “Just another example of the Coast Guard taking care of its hometown.”
The CGFD has 18 firemen, who consist of both active duty Coast Guard and civilian fire fighters. In 2014, the CGFD responded to approximately 100 emergency responses in the surrounding community.
For video of the training, click here.
A pallet packed with straw stands ready to burn inside the fire trainer located at Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, March 23, 2015. The fire trainer is used to train Coast Guard firefighters as well as their civilian counter parts for entering spaces that are on fire. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Chief Warrant Officer John Edwards) Petty Officer 3rd Class Jose Aguilar prepares his safety gear prior to entering the Coast Guard Training Center's fire trainer, March 23, 2015. Aguilar is stationed with the Coast Guard Fire Department and regularly trains with civilian firefighters from around the region. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Chief Warrant Officer John Edwards) A member of a local fire department unfurls a hose during a fire drill aboard the Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, March 23, 2015. Fire fighters from around the region train with the Coast Guard Fire Department on a regular basis to improve partnerships and effectiveness during actual emergencies. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Chief Warrant Officer John Edwards)Members of the Villas Fire Department attempt to break through a door to simulate a forced entry into the fire trainer aboard the Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, March 23, 2015. The Coast Guard Fire Department and local fire companies have used the trainer 10 times this year to improve their effectiveness in the event of actual emergency responses. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Chief Warrant Officer John Edwards) Members of the Coast Guard Training Center Cape May Fire Department stand inside the training center's burn building at the start of a training exercise, March 23, 2015. Members of the training center's fire department as well as members of the Cape May, Rio Grande and Villas fire departments use the fire trainer as a safe way to learn to work together in the event of a real emergency. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Chief Warrant Officer John Edwards)