Volunteer Firefighters and Mutual Aid:

one strength of the small community

On Tuesday, March 12, Mark Wonderly, a third grade teacher who is also a volunteer fireman with the Black River Fire Department, spoke with the W. Carthage Technology Club about what it means to be part of the interior team in a blaze like the one that consumed nine buildings on March 2nd. Here are the results of that interview.

	Question: Mr. Wonderly, what was the scariest thing you remember about the fire? Answer: When I was in the Stefano building, They sounded the horn to evacuate; I grabbed two of our large flashlights, and exited the building. When I got out, I realized the men were struggling with hoses that were stuck and dropped the flashlights to go help with the hoses. They (hoses) weigh a lot and are really hard to move when they are full of water. One wall came down; we cleared the building. I was talking with a photographer who was sorry he had missed the shot of the wall collapsing when I happened to look over my shoulder. I said, “get your camera up – that wall is going to go” – it did and crushed the flashlights I had dropped there.
Question: Is there any special safety equipment that the interior men have? Answer: One of the procedures we use, while not equipment, is a tag system that lets the chief know who is still inside the building. He takes a velcro name tag off our turn-out gear when we enter the building and returns it when we come out. A special piece of equipment that can really save lives is a motion sensor beeper. If a firefighter doesn’t move (like unconscious) for 15 seconds, the beeper goes off. Using it to locate a firefighter could really make a difference; it would mean rescue could be in seconds, not minutes
	Question: What is it like inside a burning building? Answer: For one thing, it is really dark. You usually can’t even see the man with you except with a flashlight. The heat is intense; you can watch plastic melt right on the wall. We need to check all kinds of places; closets, under beds – places that small children might hide – pets hide in those places also. We have to be really careful not to let the fire trap us; it isn’t always easy to tell where it is – you have to continually check before you open doors.
Question: What is the worst thing about fighting a fire? Answer: The heat, the tiredness, the sadness. It is wonderful when you can help, but there are times that you can only keep the fire from spreading – and sometimes you cant even do that right away.

If you look carefully at this picture, you can see the orange flashlights that Mr. Wonderly dropped. This is the photo that the photographer got of the wall collapsing.