‘Save people and save ourselves’: Inside the training preparing Sask. volunteer firefighters for the worst

When calls come in, RM of North Battleford volunteer firefighter Jason Reimer knows experience doesn’t always come with certainty.

“There are times on calls when you think, ‘Oh, man, what could I do differently or how could we improve and be more prepared for the next time,’” he said.

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That search for improvement is what had Reimer among the firefighters training in North Battleford over the weekend – not for a routine course, but for hands-on scenarios designed to mirror the kinds of emergencies firefighters may only encounter a handful of times in their careers.

At the Saskatchewan Volunteer Firefighters Association’s annual fire school, roughly 250 firefighters from across the province rotated through a number of different training scenarios, with the RM of North Battleford Fire Department hosting the event.

Firefighters extinguish a vehicle fire during a live training exercise at the Saskatchewan Volunteer Firefighters Association fire school in North Battleford. (Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

Crews moved between live-fire environments, rescue simulations and technical exercises, including vehicle extrication and confined-space scenarios, each built to reflect real-world conditions.

For Lt. Brandon Gregoire, a firefighter in the RM of North Battleford, those training opportunities are critical in a volunteer system where training time is limited.

“We don’t get as many chances, as full-time departments, to train,” he said. “So any single time we’re allowed to do any sort of training of any kind, it’s a benefit to everybody on a department and in our community.”

One of the most demanding sessions focused on rapid intervention, training firefighters to rescue one of their own in the event something goes wrong while firefighters are inside a structure.

“We’re running in to save people and save ourselves,” Gregoire said. “So to have the proper tools to train with and the proper experiences is a massive help so that we can save ourselves.”

The course is grounded in real incidents. Instructor James Dorward said one of the drills, known as the Denver Drill, was developed after a firefighter became trapped in a confined space and could not be rescued.

“This is about saving our own,” Dorward said. “There’s nobody else that’s going to come rescue us, so we got to be able to rescue ourselves and we got to have the skills to do that.”

Dorward said those risks are present at nearly every call.

“Anytime you go to a structure fire, there’s a potential of something bad happening,” he said.

Elsewhere on the training grounds, firefighters worked through vehicle-extrication scenarios, cutting into damaged vehicles and learning how to safely remove someone trapped inside.

For Jordan Rokosh, a firefighter with Legacy Regional Protective Services in Lashburn, the chance to practice that kind of rescue is not something most departments can easily replicate.

“It’s super important,” he said. “Not everyone gets the chance to work on that in their halls… It’s really, really hard to get vehicles from SGI or like towing companies because of insurance and legislation.”

Firefighters practice vehicle extrication during a training scenario at the Saskatchewan Volunteer Firefighters Association fire school in North Battleford. (Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

The training also exposes firefighters to different approaches from departments across Saskatchewan, something Rokosh said can make a difference when crews respond together.

“Every fire department does it differently,” he said. “So there are things that these guys do that I’ve never done.”

For Rokosh, the biggest challenge of the job is often balancing urgency and precision.

“It’s something where you have to be quick, but you can’t rush,” he said. “You need to take your time and do everything properly, but you need to do it quickly.”

Back in North Battleford, Reimer said the goal of the weekend was simple: To be ready for whatever comes.

“Just trying to get better training and upgrade our skills and make sure we’re ready for calls when they come in and be able to help people when they need it,” he said.

That preparation comes as wildfire season begins in Saskatchewan, with fire activity expected to increase as conditions dry out.

“It’s coming,” Reimer said with a laugh. “Once the snow disappears here, we’ll be pretty busy this spring.”

The firefighters who attended are expected to bring those lessons back to their home departments, passing on what they learned to their fellow crew members. For many of them, the motivation goes beyond training itself.

“I always think, if I’m in a situation where I need help… who’s going to come and save me, or who’s going to come and help?” Reimer said.

“And so that’s why I joined.”

‘It is state of the art’

The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency also took part in the training, bringing a mobile live-fire training unit designed to simulate interior firefighting in a controlled setting.

Fire marshal Wayne Rodger said the 53-foot unit allows firefighters to experience real conditions, including heat, smoke and limited visibility, without the risks associated with burning an actual structure.

“The ability to subject, not just new firefighters, but existing firefighters, to these opportunities are quite limited in lots of Saskatchewan, because to just arbitrarily burn down a building to try to train is really, really difficult to achieve,” he said.

A mobile live-fire training unit from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency is used during the Saskatchewan Volunteer Firefighters Association fire school in North Battleford. (Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

“This is a really well-set-up appliance that we can roll into the community and substitute that with this unit.”

Using propane as a fuel source, the system allows instructors to control conditions and shut down the environment quickly, if needed, creating what Rodger described as a safe, but realistic training space.

There is currently only one such unit in Saskatchewan, and the agency is working through the logistics of bringing it to communities across the province.

For firefighters like Alexandra Lowdermilk, of the Kenaston Fire Department, the experience offers something many smaller departments rarely get.

“It creates very realistic interior-attack firefighting conditions — smoke, heat, fire — and it’s all in a very controlled, safe environment,” she said.

“It is state of the art.”

Lowdermilk sid the training helps bridge a critical gap for volunteers, who may go for long stretches without responding to structure fires, but are still expected to perform when those calls come.