Last week, 21 Orange County residents graduated from the firefighter academy held at the county’s Fire Training Center in Goshen. Among them was Storm King Engine Co. volunteer Charles Quinn.
Quinn, who graduated from Cornwall High School this year and is currently studying computer science at the Stevens Institute of Technology, joined the fire company when he turned 16 two years ago. He was influenced to join by his father, a longtime member of the department.
“I thought it would be a great way to help the community,” said Quinn.
When he first started as a volunteer, Quinn’s role was limited due to his lack of experience, but as the veteran members taught him new skills, he became more helpful on calls. One of his initial roles was to connect the fire hose to the truck and hydrant at the scene of a fire, and then disconnect the equipment once the scene was clear.
Over the years he learned more skills, but eventually he was required to take the Firefighter 1 course in order to enter a burning building.
Quinn started the class last year, which was broken into two parts.The first portion was 50 hours and the second was 79 hours, for a total of 129 hours. Classes were held mostly on weekends and some weekday afternoons.
The first part of the course focused on what takes place on the exterior. The volunteers learned how to use equipment like the hose and ladders. There were a lot of presentations, as well as a review of a few physical skills.
The second half was heavily focused on how to deal with the interior, especially structure fires.
There was discussion about victim removal, vehicle fires, forcible entry, ventilation, survival technique, and hose line advancement. One of the biggest lessons, he said, was becoming used to wearing the Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA).
“I thought it would be a great way to help the community.”
Charles Quinn
The training center is made up of three concrete buildings — a residential home, a larger four of five story tower, and another four story building used for learning how to extinguish a fire.
Quinn said the training also included running through a maze — a building surrounded by doors, ramps, ladders, stairs, debris, and tires. Wearing their SCBA, the students had to make their way through the maze while blindfolded. The exercise is designed to simulate what it’s like trying to maneuver through a building engulfed in smoke.
While wearing their SCBA, Quinn and his classmates were asked to run through other exercises like carrying a hose up a couple flights of stairs, going in and out of buildings using a series of ladders and fire escapes, as well as dragging weights and a dummy. During this portion, a few students were unable to complete the tasks and opted to stop taking the course.
“I feel proud,” Quinn said of completing the academy. “It was fun. It was tough, but it felt very rewarding.”
Quinn said volunteering with Storm King Engine the past two years helped prepare him for what he could expect from the course. Departments are required to train volunteers and teach them the necessary skills through weekly drills.
Quinn said he felt comfortable and confident with all the tasks he was asked to complete in the academy.
“The first time they sent us into the burn building, that was definitely unsettling because there was fire right in front of us and very quickly we couldn’t see because of all the smoke. Eventually that became less scary.”
Quinn had been away on campus, but a lot of his classes were moved online, so he finds himself back home. He’ll be able to continue volunteering with Storm King. He said he plans on continuing as a volunteer for the rest of his life, but some members have suggested he consider doing something professional.
For now, Quinn is just happy to help his community.
