indigenous firefighting training camp happening for third year this weekend
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an auto extrication training exercise at an ontario fire training facility in ontario. participants a training camp for indigenous people aged 18 to 30 will also learn about using the jaws of life.
john lappa/sudbury star
calgary’s firefighting crew will host a three-day camp for young indigenous adults, teaching everything from the basics of equipment to simulating real-life scenarios, such as putting out a car fire, or the third year in a row.
starting on friday evening, 33 participants will undergo three days of exposure-based training until sunday, may 3, at the calgary fire training academy and multi-agency training centre in southeast calgary.
the idea is to let them “step into the day of a life of a firefighter,” says curtis gellings, recruitment officer for the city’s firefighting department.
“there are not that many opportunities to apprentice or internships,” he said, adding that the camp is a valuable outreach tool for the department.
he said the camp has more than doubled in popularity over the years with numbers “generally pretty representative of fire interest across the industry.” participants range in age from 18 to early 30s, and four are women,
the camp will begin with an orientation on friday, when participants will get to meet different teams from the department as well as trying on gear for the first time.
“so that’s the first time they get to try on all of the bunker gear, which would be the pants, the jackets, helmets, face pieces,” gellings said.
on saturday, participants learn how to use the self-contained breathing apparatus, handle hoses and conduct search-and-rescues. then they move on to the “jaws of life”, a hydraulic tool used by firefighters to extract accident victims from crumpled vehicles.
“the most popular are the car fire prop,” he said. “because that’s the first time they actually get to really see the fire and then utilize those skills.”
in the search-and-rescue exercise, participants get a taste of the physical demands of firefighting by carrying mannequins of different weights and sizes, while wearing rescue gear.
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“a lot of people are very surprised by what it’s like to actually have the (apparatus) on and be breathing through a cylinder, and then just the amount of work that it takes to actually search a home,” gellings said. “because they were never aware of how much physical exertion goes into it.”
the camp is a two-way street. it offers young men and women a chance to learn about the profession and for the firefighters a chance to connect and mentor within the indigenous community.
“historically, we may not have had as strong of relationships with the urban indigenous people who live in calgary as well as the surrounding communities that support calgary. us providing this camp is an opportunity for not only us to provide opportunity, but for us to learn as well,” gellings said.
gellings said he has seen the impact that outreach opportunities like these have on building stronger connections in the community.
“i’ve had a number of conversations, whether that’s meeting for coffee, going for a hall visit, talking about the application process, even looking at getting on other departments,” he said.
for some participants, trying out the camp may mean opening up an interest in joining other city departments or simply getting to try something outside of their wheelhouse.
“they might be looking at getting on in their local departments. they might apply for departments in other areas. and so with that world, we’re open and willing to help people at any point in their journey,” gellings added.
and it’s not just for the participants. this year, family members can also join on the three-day venture, where they can view, from a safe zone, their relative conducting a car fire extrication or a search-and-rescue activity. on the last day, family members can also come to the facility and talk to staff and firefighting crew.
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“from our learnings and and from our communication with a lot of the different indigenous communities, family is important to everyone, but it’s significantly important to indigenous communities,” gellings said.
at the end of the day, it isn’t about trying to recruit more firefighters to the department, but rather afford an opportunity to individuals to be exposed to something new.
“some of them may come and have this exposure and realize, you know what, this isn’t for me, and that’s great, now they’re just going to have a great memory and experience,” gellings said. “best case scenario, we can have people that now come to us and say, you know, this is something i want to do. how do i pursue that?”
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