Photo By Senior Airman Tiffany Del Oso | U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Alexander Marrero, 325th Civil Engineer Squadron...... read more read more
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When thinking of crash rescue, an eight car pile-up on the freeway probably comes to mind, or maybe an aircraft mishap on the flight line. An immediate thought isn’t usually the team and the preventative efforts that crash rescue really is.
The 325th Civil Engineer Squadron fire department’s top priority when responding to emergencies is the safety and efficiency of their response. Often times they are responding to life and death situations. With that priority in mind, training and skillset upkeep is essential.
“Training is a big part of our job,” said Staff Sgt. John Lute, 325th CES fire officer. “We train on all different types of aircraft as well as maintaining and sharpening our skills as firefighters so when we are faced with any and all emergency situations, we are mission ready.”
As a fire officer, or the highest ranking Airman assigned to a truck, it is Lute’s responsibility to lead trainings, motivate his crew and ensure they can communicate when put into dangerous situations.
“[I] focus on a few things when [the crew] is on the way to an emergency,” said Lute. “I’m looking for hazards in the roadway that may deter my driver, monitoring the radio and trying to come up with a game plan so when we arrive [on-scene] the crew members know their assignments.”
Lute explained that often times, he and his crew will beat the senior fire officers to the incident and will have to assess the situation calmly and correctly so the appropriate resources can be provided.
Senior Airman Alexander Marrero, 325th CES firefighter, is currently assigned to the emergency control center where emergency calls across Tyndall and an 18 mile stretch of U.S. Highway 98 are fielded and dispatched to the appropriate emergency responders.
“The emergency control center is like the nucleus of the fire department,” said Marrero. “We have to be trained and stay ready to preform our duties in the event of a mishap because everything starts here.”
Marrero explained ECC duty assignment can last up to six months, but whether an Airman is dispatching calls in an office or responding to incidents with the crew, they are all firefighters first.
“At first it’s a lot of information to take in,” said Marrero. “Our training varies from the live-fires that you see on base to the stuff you don’t see such as classroom activities, hands-on aircraft training, and hazmat training. It’s our job to stay trained and stay efficient at all times so that when we get [called out] to an emergency it’s just muscle memory.”
Tyndall Air Force Base provides a unique environment for the 325th CES fire department. While the installation is in the middle of an extensive rebuild, it is also home to the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group. Routine Weapons System Evaluation Program exercises are held that include aircraft and crews from across the Department of Defense. Tyndall also hosts one of the DoD’s largest air-to-air combat exercises, known as Checkered Flag, bi-annually.
With all of the construction, the 325th CES often takes advantage of vacant buildings to conduct live-fire training. This and the constant influx of personnel provides an ever-changing environment that encourages a mission ready mindset.
| Date Taken: | 02.03.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.03.2022 10:15 |
| Story ID: | 413916 |
| Location: | TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 45 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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Tyndall Air Force Base
