News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters firefighters trained on an intentionally burned house on Larch Street last Saturday.
A 1,400-square-foot house on Larch Street went up in flames on Saturday morning as Sisters firefighters touched off the latest in a series of live fire training exercises.
Some 23 firefighters participated in the drill.
The exercise "went very smoothly, without any problems whatsoever," said Assistant Fire Chief Ken Enoch. "The house took about two hours to burn down."
For the past several weeks, firefighters have been using the site - which is being cleared for future redevelopment - for training drills. They practiced ventilating the roof, cutting through walls, and making forced entry.
Then, on Saturday, the wood-framed house was torched.
"The fire on Saturday was more of a defensive operation," Enoch explained. "Defensive operations with a little transition from defensive to offensive operations."
Firefighters practiced holding the fire and preventing spread, then worked on cooling the building to allow entry and attack.
The Sisters fire department has had good fortune in having many opportunities for live fire training. During the building boom of the mid-2000s, many old houses were used for the most realistic simulations available.
"We aren't doing it as often as we used to do it, just because of the availability of structures," Enoch said.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
Reader Comments(0)