A new program at Blenheim District High School aims to inspire students to seek a career as first-responders with either fire, police or emergency medical services.
BLENHEIM – A new program at Blenheim District High School aims to inspire students to seek a career as first-responders with either fire, police or emergency medical services.
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The Firefighter in a High School program expanded to Blenheim and the Tilbury District High School this year, after beginning at Ridgetown District High School last year. Firefighters, police, paramedic and dispatch personnel go to Grade 10 Civics and Careers classes at high schools to speak with students as part of the course.
Chatham-Kent Fire and Rescue Chief Chris Case said the program is a partnership with the Lambton Kent District School Board, who have “funded us to come your civics class to try and talk to you about not only being a first-responder, but the importance of being a good member of the community.”
In a wrap-up of the course on Wednesday, the fire chief told students it is important to remember if you want to be a firefighter, police officer or paramedic you have to graduate high school.
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“We can no longer tell you that you can be a firefighter without any qualifications,” he said.
Case said students learn about the math and science involved in being a firefighter.
If there is a swimming pool that is needed as a water source at a fire, he said, firefighters have to do the math to figure out how soon it will be emptied, including how many nozzles can run off the water supply.
Science is also important, Case said, citing chemistry.
“Every single fire we go to now there are chemicals involved. There’s hazardous materials,” he said. “Firefighters have to protect themselves from those chemicals.
Davion Nead, 15, is interested in the pay and benefits.
“I think I might want to become a firefighter, because they make six-figures,” Nead said.
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Quinn Cofell, 16, said, “I feel like it’s good for people to give them more opportunities for what they want to be when they’re older.”
While he is not interested in a career as a first-responder, Cofell learned some interesting things about firefighting.
“I thought they only responded to fires. I didn’t realize they did a lot of other stuff like car accidents.”
Firefighter Kevin Paine, a captain with Station No. 18 Blenheim, said he has been a firefighter for 26 years, and so was his father, and never had this kind of opportunity while in high school.
“This is a great learning point and it’s great to see the kids’ participating and interest in the fire service,” he said.
While there was a focus on the education needed, there was still some cool activities, including having students spray the different hoses.
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Paine said students were also able to use auto extraction tools, which included skills test where students tried to pick up an egg move it from one pylon to another without breaking it.
“Some obviously broke, but there were some kids that actually moved the egg without breaking it,” he said.
Civics and careers teacher Candice Marchand said, “The students really seemed to enjoy it, especially the hands-on aspect.
“Learning from the people actually doing the job is a completely different thing than researching it online.”
Case hopes the program can expand.
“We’d like to roll this out more and more to the point we’re doing this in nearly every school,” he said.
The chief would also like to see the program “evolve into is a cadet scheme,” working with the schools to have fire cadets to provide students a step into a career.
Case, who came to the CKFR from England, said, “I’d to see a chief officer in Chatham-Kent in the years to come that started on one of these courses.”
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