Important Dates

Our next meeting will be on May 19, 2010 in Mrs. Gautier's room (209) until 3:15. If you have any questions, please see Mrs. Gautier or Justin Kiefer.

          As you walk down the halls you may have noticed the increasing amount of students who are wearing 46 rescue shirts or any kind of firefighting shirt? Its something I have noticed as a student of BHS. This may not be new news to me but it is to some other people. This increase in firefighting t-shirts are because recently Warren County is testing the next batch of firefighters and EMT’s (emergency medical technicians). This is not an easy task to complete and it is something I am quite aware of myself. This is because recently I have embarked on my own journey to complete my own certifications. The entire process interested me and is extremely drawn out. “Become a firefighter or EMT” is not as easy at it may seem. Every person you see in theses uniforms have under gone over 100 hours of training and much paperwork just to be able to save lives. Luckily our school has seemingly an abundance of upcoming or already is firefighters and EMT’s. I had the chance to interview Ryan McCrae who is not only a firefighter but also an EMT with full certifications.

 

Natasha: You’re on the Blairstown Ambulance Squad and Hope Fire Department?

Ryan: Yes.

 

Natasha: How do you get your certifications for your EMT training and firefighting training?

Ryan: For EMT, I went to Morristown Police and Fire Academy where they had my EMT courses which were for about two months every Saturday for 8 hours. For fire I am taking courses at Warren County Fire School.

 

Natasha: What do you do at fire school?

Ryan: We learn how to search and rescue. For example, search patterns and putting on your gear correctly.

 

Natasha: How many people your age would you say are in fire school and what other ages are there?

Ryan: It’s mostly kids my age like 16 or 17, but the range is about from 16 to 25.

 

Natasha: Is there a certain age where you can actually put out a fire or are there no restrictions at all?

Ryan: Well, you have to be 18 before the “first burn” as it’s called in fire school.

 

Natasha: What’s the first burn?

Ryan: It’s when they set a tower on fire and you’re expected to go into it and practice your search patterns, along with remembering to ventilate and find a fake person.

 

Natasha: Do you have to be 18 to put out the fire?

Ryan: No, you only have to be 18 to go inside the building but if you’re under 18 than you have to be a certain distance from the building, which depends on the size fire, and building.

 

Natasha: What did you do for your EMT training?

Ryan: Well it was just basic first aid, CPR, and life support. For example, for CPR the 30:2 rules and how to have a correct seal for breathing into an unconscious person while still being safe. A major thing was ABC’s, which are airway, breathing and circulation. I also learned how to administer three drugs for people in need, which are epinephrine, inhalers and nitrogen. Nitrogen is used to increases heart rate by opening up capillaries, where epinephrine and inhalers open up airways for easier breathing.

 

Natasha: How many people your age were in your EMT course?

Ryan: There were a lot more kids my age than in Firefighting School.

 

Natasha: How did you pay for your training?

Ryan: The state had paid for it but normally courses are 600 dollars per course as long as you’re a volunteer.

 

Natasha: Do you know if they still will in the future because I think Chris Christie was planning to cut funding?

Ryan: I’m not sure but they better because it would destroy the volunteer base, which would put people more in debt. This is because any ambulance ride given by a volunteer company is pretty cheap compared to those given by paramedics.

 

Natasha: Do you think these volunteer fire companies and ambulance corps are important?

Ryan: Yes, very important and sometimes people don’t realize this in a town as small as the ones we live in. I mean yes it takes a while to get to someone now but if we didn’t have these volunteer groups than it would take twice as long. It’s also not hard to keep them around because all you have to do is donate and this makes it so you don’t have to pay.

 

Natasha: How’s it like on a site of an accident now that you have both certifications?

Ryan: I can do a lot more, like tending to a patient or helping put out a fire.

 

Natasha: Is it chaos at the scene of an accident or fire?

Ryan: It depends on the call. If it’s a working fire than its chaos in the beginning because the chain of command needs to be set up and a water source located. However, there is accountability with tags that everyone has and these tags are given to the person who is in command of the scene so everyone knows where they are.

 

Natasha: Are they physical tags?

Ryan: Yes, they’re plastic or metal and come in a set of two, one for my truck and one for the incident commander in charge of the scene. They have your name and Fire Company or EMT number on them.

 

Natasha: Is there any difference for EMT’s jobs?

Ryan: No, all tags go to the incident commander and the EMT’s set up a rehabilitation center where firefighters have to sit for about 45 minutes and have their vitals checked. They’re also there for anyone that needs treatment.

 

Natasha: Well, that’s it, thanks for taking your time to do this interview.

Ryan: It’s fine, and nice to give incite into the kind of unknown.