Smoke House Training

On the evening of Monday, April 19, 2021 the members of the Guilderland Fire Department participated in a smoke house training class. These classes are intended to strengthen our member skills in wearing and working with self-contained breathing apparatus.

This class in particular was very important for our members as it was their chance to demonstrate proficiency with our new Air Packs before they are put into service for use in emergencies.

This class consisted of two evolutions:

First Evolution – In this exercise training officers took the members SCBA and placed it inside the dark training classroom. The training officers then left the air packs in a state where members would have to first locate them, then untangle the straps and put their air pack back together in order to use them. The purpose of this drill is to test each members proficiency with the key components of the SCBA.

Second Evolution – Here members would enter the building on their hands and knees and follow a hose line which goes over, under and through a series of obstacles which members must navigate through while in a completely dark environment. The goal here is to expose members to the types of situations they may encounter in a real fire and provide them a safe environment in which to practice.