Volunteer Recruit Training Course

On Sunday 6th july, with three other recruits, at 7.00am we left for the National Training Centre right here in sunny Rotorua.

DAY 1

After a few hours in the class room doing a bit of health and safety and course administration, we hit the parade ground, for inspection and then into training.

In watches of five, we started with basic hose drills, followed by more hose drills, then after lunch, more hose drills followed by a hose drill to finish of the afternoon and then a hose drill to finish the day, then recovering a runaway branch, which involves crawling along the hose in 6 inches of cold freezing mud, to catch a 3 kilo lump of aluminium that would happily take your head off if given a chance. Then in the shower a bit more classroom then home. OH MY GOD! I have never worked so hard in my life!

DAY 2

Parade at 8.00am, followed by hose drills, more hose drills and more hose drills, guess what we did after lunch? Thats right Ladder drills, portable dams and portable pumps followed by ground monitors!



DAY 3

Level 2 first aid, all day.

As a total surprise to us all on the course, we were greeted by a special guest. Fire Fighter Cameron Grylls. Those of you not that upto date with the New Zealand Fire Service, will not have heard of Cameron. He was one of the Fire Fighters injured in the April 2008 Tamahere Coolstore Fire. Cameron is also a registered nurse and has just finished his first aid trainers course and the NZFS decided we could be his first guinea pigs.

After an emotional welcome in the morning, lunch was followed by a question and answer session that lastest about an hour, we were all in total awe of a man who chose to protect life and property of other people and almost paid the ultimate price. Our deepest sympathies go to all those injured at the Tamahere fire and to the family and friends of SSO Derek Lovell, who died in the explosion.

SO, passed first aid and onto day 4, breathing apparatus training!

DAY 4

Breathing apparatus (BA) training day 1 of 3. Probably the most least looked forward to element of the course.



After some morning theory training it was onto the BATB, Breathing apparatus training building.

BATB!!

BATB is a four storey, gas heated to 80 degrees celsius, training building. Loaded with obstacle courses and stairs and stuff, all the normal things you encounter in a burning building.

Day 1 consisted of 5 wearings, completing the obstacle course, search and rescue techniques, air maximisation and breathing techniques. Gas suit training, Entry control and equipment doning procedures.

Day2 was much the same but harder drills, but the experience gained in day 1 carried us through.

Day 3 and we moved to Rotorua Fire Station and RFTB!

The Realistic Fire Training Building is located in the bottom of the training tower, and is basically a giant concrete box with a log fire in the corner.

I was slightly very bloody scared. Standing in a building with BA on while the instructor lit a fire and we stand there as smoke fills the room. Take the mask of and take one breath and you DIE! It reached 410 degrees celsius in there by the end of the day, bloody hot. We did 4 wearings that day and by the end of it I was disappointed that I couldn't do more, I loved it and was never really that scared. The sight of fire did not seem to bother me, I just focused on completeing the task at hand.


DAY 7

Back to the NTC and one last day of theory, a few more parcticle demonstrations on foam application, fire extinguishers and ejector pumps, don't ask, you won't understand, and then one final drill involving all the knowledge we had gathered over the last six days, culminating in me making access to the third floor window via a ladder wearing full BA, in torrential rain. Window was about 7-8metres high and I am very scared of heights, slightly less now though!

Job done.