Development continues at Bovey Tracy

My development training will continue until such time as I have taken several sessions of different elements of training, and then at the end I have to be assessed again on these to become a competent Firefighter.

So, in May 2018 and June, I took part in two Road Traffic Collision (RTC) sessions, adding to my development training file. In these sessions I was with Harvey, from Totnes Fire Station, but also got to see James and Jamie again from my recruitment courses.

RTC training is not easy, all vehicles are different, scenarios are different, but we have to learn the basics during training, how to manage different kinds of glass, cutting and spreading different makes and types of vehicle, and also, imagining situations whereby there may be only one person or multiple casualties in a car.

It’s hot work, being honest, I think I sweat more in RTC training than any other. The hydraulic tools are heavy and have to be held at fairly awkward angles at times, but this is where teamwork comes in. If it gets heavy, pass it on to someone who is a little fresher. No one works on their own in the Fire Service, we all help each other to get the task completed.

These two sessions were no different, I think I managed to get in all of the jobs required in training over these two Saturdays, chocking the car so it’s stable, managing glass safely, creating space to work in, and everyone’s favourite, cutting, spreading and ramming using the hydraulic tools. I also used the hydraulic pump. I love the practical side of RTC training, but as always sessions contain question and answer before we start the practical, and all the way through it, modular training is great to keep that brain ticking over, constantly putting in a refreshing information.

Both sessions ended and me and Harvey headed back to Station 31, Totnes, put our kit back and I headed for the shower! If you are wanting to join, or are currently in training, prepare to sweat doing this, it’s inevitable!