By Edna Horton/nw news editor
Mock police car chases, rope repelling and fire truck pump operation added variety to a normal school day on NW Campus last week.
The public safety demonstrations, sponsored by NW Campus fire technology and criminal justice departments, ended the two-day Student Success Seminars Sept. 16.
Irving fire Capt. Jonathan Masters used student volunteer Ammie Nicholls to show how difficult it is to put on all fire gear in just a short period of time, including a jacket, gloves, helmet, air tank, mask and boots.
“It was crazy. I smell like smoke now,” she said. “When he put the boots on and the oxygen tank, it was so heavy. It was like having a person on my back. When he took it off, it was so relieving.”
Roanoke fire Lt. Doug Parks showed the students what was involved in putting on a hazardous materials suit. He demonstrated on student Linia Bernardy the difficulty of donning the suit and breathing and hearing while wearing it.
“It was a little scary,” Bernardy said. “The mask was a little close to my face, and I started to panic, like I couldn’t breathe.”
Two members of the criminal justice department raced their cars on the track used to train the officers in combat driving. The simulation of a car chase involved a lead car with the bad guys and a car with the good guys following them.
Student Estevan Vasquez took a ride in the bad guys’ car.
“It was cool, I liked it. It was the rush I needed right now,” he said.
Student Nahum Cruz was in the front seat because he wanted a full view of what was going on.
“It was an awesome adrenaline rush,” Cruz said. “I could see everything.”
Student Jheovay Agulera sat in the back and filmed the ride with his cell phone.
“Yeah, I had fun,” he said. “I took my seat belt off. My phone almost fell. I put it out the window.”
NW Campus has several buildings used in the fire safety training. One provides training for rope repelling. Grapevine fire Capt. Ritchie Tice showed students how he repels down the outside of the building using only two ropes.
First, he hung over the edge of a balcony located at the top of the building. Then he slowly slid down and hung upside down. Doing this allows him to reach people who may be stranded on the higher floors of the building.
Student Cameron Johnson was watching from down below.
“It was pretty cool all the things he could do,” Johnson said. “If I had a chance to, I would do it. I would just do it right now.”
Michael Glynn of the Fort Worth Fire Department demonstrated how the pump of a fire truck worked. He showed students the length of the pump hose and explained it was long because sometimes a fire hydrant may not be close by and firefighters have to go find where one is.
Dennis Floyd, another Fort Worth firefighter, gave a demonstration on holding and using a fire hose that is pumping out water.
Student Brandon Weatherspoon decided to try it and see what it was like.
“It was really fun,” he said. “It was kind of pushing me back, and I think if he wasn’t there I might’ve fell.”
Dallas Reyes, a flight nurse who received his training on NW Campus, brought a medical helicopter to show students what it was like to put all equipment needed in a small space.
Jhoana Medina, a nursing major, is interested in training as a flight nurse.
“I wanna be a nurse and I wanna be a flight nurse,” she said.
Medina was amazed at how small the helicopter was but could still fit all the medical equipment inside.
“The seat is right there. You are very close to the patient,” she said.
Sera Hernandez is also a NW nursing student who wants to become a flight nurse.
“I would be a flight nurse in a heartbeat,” Hernandez said. “We [Hernandez and Medina] just found out TCC had this program.”
For more information about either program, contact the fire technology office at 817-515-7709 and criminal justice office at 817-515-7172.
