Members of the Mahopac Falls VFD and Carmel VFD took advantage of the sunny weather and made their way to the Putnam County Fire Training Center located on Gypsy Trail Road.

The morning-long drill was conducted by Lieutenant Scagnelli and upon his instruction, members from both departments were split into multiple groups to perform numerous evolutions during 2 scenarios.

The first scenario was a mock fire call where members were dispatched to a residential garage fire on the lower level of a ranch-style home. Upon arrival, the fire had spread into the adjoining laundry room and the lower-level access to the laundry room was blocked by hoarder-type conditions inside the basement entrance. The members had to enter through the main level and stretch the hose into the basement.

The second scenario was another mock fire call. This time, members were dispatched to a 2-story residential home which appeared to be an older home. The caller reported that the first-floor room and its contents were on fire. Upon arrival, members were informed that there was a patient (mannequin) unaccounted for.

These types of live-fire drills are extremely important for members to train with as they enable the firefighters to refresh their skills and learn new ones along the way. During the mock call scenarios, the firefighters were able to rotate between the following tasks: Fire suppression, Search & Rescue, VEIS, Mechanical Ventilation, Water operations, RIT operations, Ladder operations, and Victim Extrication.

As always, for all evolutions, our EMS team was on standby for evaluations and in case of any medical emergencies.

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