A Rare Look Inside the Fire
By Lt. Tony Carneavale
Jan 14, 2009 - 3:21:14 PM

As noted in a previous article, the Burton Fire District had the fortunate opportunity to do some live fire training in an acquired structure off of Cherokee Farms Road during the month of December.

Using a helmet mounted camera, firefighters were able to capture video footage to document what it looks like to enter a burning building from the perspective of a firefighter.  Shown below is one of the videos taken showing a fire crew entering the building with a hose line to extinguish a fire.

Here is a quick narration of what you will see in the video:
- Firefighters enter as a team of 3 personnel from the garage into the smoke filled home.

- Visibility is limited by the smoke so firefighters must use a special camera that "sees through the smoke" to navigate the building to the fire.

- Once firefighters reach the fire room, they pause and discuss the fire.  This is for training purposes only.  In a real fire situation, firefighters would extinguish the fire as soon as they find it.

- Once water is applied, visibility goes from limited to zero.  This is really what it is like inside a fire.  Firefighters often must work in an environment where they cannot see and must rely on other senses to accomplish their tasks.