SUPERIOR — Superior firefighters geared up for spring training this week. Utilizing an empty building, a nearby fire hydrant, a portable tank, fire rigs and wooden props, they practiced skills that could save a life.
“The most exciting thing is that we’re doing this in conjunction with Duluth. Their assistant chief of training is here and one of their senior firefighters,” said Battalion Chief Joe Tribbey with the Superior Fire Department.
Duluth crews will rotate across the bridge to train beside the Superior firefighters next week, according to Damon Laurion, assistant chief of training with the Duluth Fire Department. Someone from the Cloquet Area Fire District is expected to observe the training Friday, April 28.
“Relationship building is a huge part about it,” Laurion said. “We’re all in this together.”
Superior’s aerial truck was called to Duluth to help with the Seaway Hotel fire in January 2022.
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“We’ve been over there ... three times in the last two years for different fires,” said Captain Mike Hoyt, training coordinator for the Superior Fire Department, and the barriers between the two cities are breaking down.
“That kind of stuff is happening more and more often, and we’re realizing we’re all in the same boat with equipment, people, staffing minimum, staffing problems,” Tribbey said. “It’s time not to let the river and the two bridges separate what we can do as a team.”
Team skills
On Wednesday, April 26, the former office for the Downtown Mobile Home Park was used for Vent Enter Search, or VES training. The technique involves a very pointed search of a structure.
“So we go with high probability areas that we can identify — bedrooms, things like that,” Tribbey said. “We’ll actually break out the window, go into that room, find the door, shut it, isolate that area from the rest of the fire and smoke, and then search that area. So what we’re doing is we’re going for high probabilities where victims are and finding victims quicker.”
Laurion and Senior Duluth Firefighter Matt “Swanny” Swanson led the Superior firefighters through the technique, which they use in Duluth.
“We had the fire Saturday where this technique was utilized, all the way around that eight-plex,” Laurion said.
Above the VES training, a second crew practiced roof entry techniques. The firefighters took turns setting down the ladder truck bucket on the roof and sawing a hole in a wooden roof prop.
Along North 12th Street, a third crew practiced drafting, the process of pulling water from a folding dump tank to fight a fire with. The technique is needed to battle a blaze in areas with no fire hydrants — areas of Billings Park, Fraser Shipyards, Butler Park, South Superior, sites along the waterfront like grain elevators, or mutual aid calls to the county.
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“For us, we have so many young, new firefighters that are acting as drivers. Let’s give them the experience,” Hoyt said.
The three-for-one training was a way to get more bang for the buck, Tribbey said.
“It doesn’t make any sense to do one task and have the rest of the people sitting around. Let’s keep 'em busy, let’s keep doing the tasks that need to be accomplished so we can keep moving our training forward,” Hoyt said.
Utilizing on-call crews, the cost for the entire operation was roughly $200, according to Hoyt.
'Gold medal' performance
Swanson compared the work to sports training.
“The quarterback doesn’t just show up on Sunday and throw the ball. He’s throwing the ball all week, right? The receiver’s catching the ball all week long, so in the game they can make that spectacular catch,” Swanson said. “Those are all skills. All of this stuff is a skill, and it’s perishable.”
When firefighters get a call at 3 a.m. for a structure fire with someone trapped inside, Hoyt said, it’s game time.
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“And you want it to be second nature,” he said.
That comes through training and repetition.
“Whether you're a small town out in the county or you’re a big city, when you dial 911 you’re expecting gold medal, award-winning, world championship performance,” Swanson said. “So we have to practice these skills and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
The training was initially set to take place using the CAFD's burn trailer and tower. City building inspectors let Tribbey know the empty office was available about three weeks ago.
“We’re always looking for buildings that we can train (in),” Tribbey said.
Hoyt and his team pivoted to fit the training to the new structure. The one-story building with a basement offered a more realistic setting than a burn trailer.
“This is the real deal ... I mean it’s unlimited what we can build in it," he said. "And we actually moved in furniture and beds.”
This week, firefighters will practice the basics of VES training. Next week, they will respond to training scenarios, from a cluttered hoarder house to a family with a baby and more.
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“They will be forced to make some decisions based on ‘Do I go after the fire or do I go after the potential victim first,’ so that’s really the brunt of this training,” Tribbey said.
Training will take place Monday, May 1; Wednesday, May 3; and Friday, May 5.
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