By Molly Lovell
Editor
     Fire departments in cities and towns across Maine and the entire country have seen many improvements in fire fighting technology during the past 30 years, resulting in a decreasing amount of fires they are called to extinguish each year.
      While that is a positive thing, it’s still important for firefighters to participate in live fire trainings.
     Last Thursday, 26 members of the Scarborough Fire Department did just that when they participated in such a training at the Moosehead Motel on Rte. One in Scarborough.
     Chief Michael Thurlow said that along with improved technology an increase in public education has also greatly lessened the amount of fires since the 1970s.
     “(Live fire training) is a critical need . . . we have a whole generation of firefighters that don’t have the experience of fighting fires,” he said.
      The motel was donated to the fire department for the training. Thurlow said the department logs 12,000 hours of qualified training a year.
     He said it’s difficult to estimate how many buildings are donated to the fire department for training sessions each year.
     “It’s really kind of cyclical . . . we’re also particular about what we accept,” he said.
     Thurlow said it’s important to be sensitive to environmental issues and to accept buildings in areas where a live fire will not be a nuisance to residents.
     Firefighter and paramedic Jeff Grinnell said Thursday’s session was focused on training members how to use the compressed air foam system (CAFS), which is a non-toxic, biodegradable liquid that’s carried in a separate tank from the water in the engines.
     Scarborough is one of the first fire departments in the area to be using this technology in fighting structure fires, he said.
     The mixture is created by adding water and Class A foam with air from an air compressor. The product is then delivered through attack lines off of the truck to the fire.
     “The foam sticks to surfaces more effectively than just water alone,” Grinnell said.
     The system is used on Class A type of combustibles such as household goods and wild land fires.
     Other areas of training members practiced Thursday were how to properly run the fire trucks, how to attack the fires and team building.
     Many precautions are taken when setting up a training exercise with live fire, Grinnell said.
     Members spend time prepping and inspecting a building before using it for a training session. They remove carpeting and other types of fuel that burn excessively or are considered unpredictable.
     The way in which the fires are set is by using wooden pallets and dry hay for fuel.
     Once preparations are finished, the incident commander gives the order to light the fire and a firefighter goes into the room with the protection of a handline crew. They then set the fuel on fire using a portable torch.
     “Everyone from the most junior firefighter to the most senior chief needs to always be training and learning,” Grinnell said.
     The newer members of course get to put learned skills to use and the more seasoned firefighters get to brush up on their skills and pass on information to new firefighters.
     Joe Bell, a first year firefighter is studying fire science at Southern Maine Community College (SMCC) and is part of the Live in Student Firefighter Program.
     Besides going to classes, Bell lives at the station and is required to go on calls and participate in station duties.
     “Everyday you learn something new,” he said.
     Bell said he has responded to three “real” fires. He said it’s common for the more experienced firefighters to take the lead while fighting fires that pose a significant amount of danger.
     Thurlow said the Scarborough Fire Department has been partnering with SMCC in this program since the 1980s.
     “It’s really as if they were a full-time firefighter,” he said of students in the program.
     Students must maintain their grades while living at the station and carry a pager with them at all times.
     “It gives them tremendous on the job training that would be hard to get anywhere else,” Thurlow said.
     He said that dozens of students have participated in the program in Scarborough and went on to become full-time firefighters in departments across the state. One former student is now a sergeant in the state fire marshal’s office.
     “They’ve done good things and gone to good places,” he said.