By Marisa Dawson
Future firefighters got hands-on experience with critical equipment and safety techniques last weekend as Bennington Fire & Rescue hosted a Tri-County Fire Corps training on Saturday, April 18.
The Tri-County Fire Corps Exploring Program is a public-private partnership between area fire departments, Metro Community College, the Explorer Program and the First Responders Foundation. The program provides high school-aged students, typically between 16 and 19, with an introduction to firefighting through hands-on training, mentorship and career exploration.
Participants rotate through departments across Douglas, Washington and Sarpy counties, learning a wide range of skills over the course of the program. During their stop in Bennington, cadets focused on ladder operations and tool identification- two foundational components of fireground safety.
“These are tri-county cadets,” said Firefighter Wyatt Rupp. “That consists of Douglas, Washington and Sarpy counties. They’re all around the high school age and it gives them a good step into the career and volunteer firefighting. They’ll go to different stations around the area to practice different skills,” he added, further explaining the various stations for identifying various tools and learning several ladder skills.
Throughout the morning, cadets practiced lifting and carrying ladders (both in pairs and individually), climbing safely and learning how to properly position ladders for rescue scenarios. The training emphasized both technical skill and situational awareness.
“The importance for all this stuff, especially different [ladder] raises and carries, is safety,” Rupp emphasized. “We also talk about putting our ladders on windows and how to rescue victims. A good part of it is learning the techniques and muscle groups that we use so we can safely and effectively do it to rescue victims.”
Beyond the technical lessons, the program plays a key role in building the next generation of firefighters, something Rupp said is especially meaningful for departments like Bennington.
“It’s a really good opportunity to hopefully get new and young people involved with the career and volunteering of firefighting to build that next generation,” Rupp said. He explained that this gives the Bennington crew a chance to explain how they handle things and they also get the opportunity to learn how other stations handle a wide variety of scenarios faced on the job.
Bennington Fire & Rescue hosts Tri-County Fire Corps training sessions about once a year, in addition to its regular monthly trainings for current volunteers. For Rupp, the experience is also personal. He once stood in a similar position as the cadets he now helps train.
“I think a good highlight for me is that I was in the same shoes as they were at some point. I was a cadet here for four years before I became a volunteer and now I’m on the career staff,” he said. While Rupp was not part of the tri-county training corps, he described its similarity to the cadet program he went through. “I think it’s really helpful to try to help and show all the new generations how to do things and get them ready,” he added.
Firefighter Isaac Jancouskas, who recently joined the Bennington Fire & Rescue crew after graduating from their academy, also shared a brief perspective on mentoring cadets before being called away on a service call.
“It’s absolutely amazing to see the different intelligence and different perspectives and where they’re at and coming from,” Jancouskas said. “Just being able to teach them, because whatever knowledge I have, it’s my job, no matter the level that I’m at, to be able to have them come to my level… that way they can take over for me when I retire and so forth.”
As the Tri-County Fire Corps program continues through its seasonal sessions, experiences like the Bennington training offer cadets a realistic look at the demands, and rewards, of a career in firefighting, while helping local departments invest in the future of their workforce.
