Sneak peek behind the scenes as our new recruits are taken through their paces

We welcomed our new recruits into Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service on 01/03/2022. They have spent the last three weeks at the fire service training college in Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire getting to grips with what they will need to know to start their next phase as a development firefighter.

All we can say is they must be absolutely worn out. Let’s see what they have been up to in the last few weeks.

Familiarising themselves with hose running, including completing the 6 in 8 challenge. This challenge has the students each running out a 25m length hose, held at chest height, then rolling it back up 6 times in less than 8 minutes! This is done in full fire kit and helps to build physical strength and cardio endurance. This is one of the basic skills that they need to master for use on incident grounds.

Hose running practice

Other training exercises have included…

Pitching 9m and 13.5m ladders

Carrying casualties down 13.5m ladder

Pumping from open water

Undertaking water relay

Completing all pumping drills

Extinguisher input

Foam input

Basic fire service knots to secure/lift equipment safely

Extinguishing fire training – Foam input

Did you know:

• Appliances being used can deliver 2,250 litres of water per minute
• 13.5 m ladders are pitched with 4 crew members weighing around 112kg and can reach the 4^th floor of a building

While the practical exercises put them through their paces and educates them well for real world scenarios, they also take part in technical lectures every day. This allows them to not only know how to use the equipment, but more importantly understand how it works. Our up-and-coming Firefighters are doing a brilliant job so far and we are proud to support them throughout their journey.

Sitting theoretical exam

We asked our Area Trainer James Tuffley how the new recruits are getting on:

“The recruits have had a steep learning curve with most of them taking a big step away from civilian life and being introduced to the disciplined, arduous, and highly technical areas of firefighting.

They are lucky enough to be training at a fantastic facility where their skills and knowledge are continually improving.

They are living and working out of the on-site fire station, developing their understanding of station life – working together as a team and completing daily routines.

We have tired but highly motivated recruits moving forward into the technical area of RTC training which will bring further challenges.” – James Tuffley

On Friday 25^th March they all took part in their first Practical Skills Assessment which consolidated all their learning to date. Keep your eyes peeled to follow our new recruit’s journey, next up on the agenda is Road Traffic Collision (RTC) Training!