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Photo Information

A Crash Fire Rescue Marine with Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Beaufort Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting unit, prepares a hose to extinguish a fire during a training exercise on May15, 2013.

Photo by Lance Cpl. Jacob Prescott

Bringing fight to fire

28 May 2013 | Lance Cpl. Sarah Cherry Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort

Marines with Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting conducted a mutual response training ex­ercise with firefighters from Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort’s struc­tural fire department in Pine Grove aboard the Air Station, May 15.

Constant training is part of any firefighter’s schedule to maintain and improve skills.

“That particular drill was important because we intermingled with base firefighters to see how we would work with them,” said Cpl. Raul Landeo, a training clerk with ARFF.

ARFF and the struc­tural fire department don’t work together of­ten, so it’s important for each group to be aware of how the other works and interacts in an emer­gency situation.

“The scenario was a [jet] came down in Pine Grove, where an aircraft crashed but it was off the airfield,” said Landeo. “We need to know ex­actly how we work with [base firefighters].”

While ARFF focuses primarily on response, evacuation and res­cue of aircraft crew in an emergency, they need to know how to conduct a response with the structural fire department, which focuses on response, evacuation and rescue during building fires. If jurisdictions cross in an emergency situation, both ARFF and the structural fire depart­ment would respond.

“Communication is vital out there, so be­ing able to relay infor­mation across depart­ments is paramount,” said Sgt. Erick Owens, a pointman with ARFF.

This training also pro­vides an opporutnity for Marines to share expe­riences, stories and les­sons with other profes­sional firefighters.

“I’ve grown a deeper respect for the firefight­ing community [since I joined the Marine Corps],” said Owens.