FORT SILL, Okla. Oct. 8, 2015 -- If you drive by the fire department during the day, you might catch a few of the firefighters sitting around watching TV. After a few scenes like this, it might be easy to think these guys do little else, but according to Eric Marshall that's because they do a lot of their work at night.
"A lot of people see us sitting around when in reality we do a lot of training," said Marshall, a six-year veteran with the Fort Sill Fire Department. "We train while everyone else is sleeping."
Such was the case the week of Sept. 28 when, while the rest of the post slept, 17 firefighters responded to a call of a downed aircraft on the flight line. Firefighters at the four post stations scrambled to put on their gear, climbed into their trucks and rushed to the scene. What awaited them was a simulated downed Black Hawk.
"We don't have any aircraft on Fort Sill, but we need to train because aircraft do come (here) to refuel or if their unit is doing a training mission," said Battalion Chief Randy Monroe. "Our guys need to stay familiar with how to conduct this type of mission."
Unlike structural fires or wildlife fires, downed aircraft can include addition factors not ordinarily faced or repeatedly trained on, said firefighter Christopher Hoosier. Topography, ground slope, fuel spills and debris are all added elements firefighters must be aware of when they approach the scene of a downed aircraft. Marshall, an Air Force veteran, said in his time in the service, he experienced inflamed aircraft on more than one occasion and that the scenario is different than that of other fires.
"Even the way you approach is different," he said. "You set up at a 45-degree angel on the side just in case something goes off. There are 1,000 gallons of fuel so we use foam. It's just another thing to take into consideration."
The training takes place at night to add yet one more element to the already complicated scenario. Everything is a little easier during the day, said Monroe, but that doesn't mean bad things will always happen when there is daylight.
"You're not always going to get a crash during the day so we have these guys run around in the dark," he said. "It's good for them to get familiar with doing this at night."
While getting up at all hours of the night for training may sound like a pain, Station Chief John Ladd says the firefighters actually look forward to evening training.
"It's a time where they learn, but it's also a time where they get to get together," Ladd said. "It creates camaraderie and a brotherhood when we work together. And, we get to give each other a hard time."
Hoosier says there's one more added bonus to evening training.
"We're not out wearing all our gear in the heat of the day," he said. "It's really a great job. No one wants to leave."
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