“This is one of the best properties we’ve ever had for training.” Captain Josh Turner, Alexandria Fire Department
July 20, 2017
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Friday, July 21, and Sunday, July 23, the Alexandria Fire Department
will conduct extensive training exercises at the Oblate House, a building on
Bishop Ireton’s campus, poised to be demolished to make way for a new academic
center.
Details
When: Friday, July 21, and Sunday, July 23; 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Where: Bishop
Ireton High School, 201 Cambridge Rd., Alexandria
This training is intense. At least 50 firefighters
each day.
“We will practice every skill that we use in a real fire
situation,” says Captain Josh Turner, Field-Training Officer at the Alexandria Fire
Department.
The training includes, but not limited to:
- Forcing entry through locked doors;
- Cutting a hole in the roof to ventilate heat, smoke, fire gases;
- Opening up dry wall to look for a hidden fire;
- Stretching hose
lines to the third floor to simulate a fire in a third floor bedroom;
- Using theatrical
smoke to search for victims in a no-visibility situation.
The Oblate House is a three-story building.
“We have a concrete building at the fire department
training ground, and you can light fires over and over again, but a different
layout like the Oblate House is invaluable,” says Turner. He says the Oblate
House looks like an apartment building. “The realism of the hallways and stairwells
is fantastic.”
Dr. Thomas Curry, Head
of School at Bishop Ireton High School looks forward to opportunities like this
to assist the City of Alexandria.
“For the last 54 years,
Bishop Ireton has been a vibrant force in the Alexandria Community. As we
prepare to build a state-of-the-art academic center and embark on an exciting
new chapter in the school’s history, I think it's an excellent opportunity to
partner with the city and give the Alexandria Fire Department a chance to
conduct training exercises in a building we plan to demolish. The Ireton
community will always cherish the memories and relationships made possible
because of Oblate House. I think it's wonderful that its last gift is to the
protectors of our great city."