any further damage to the scene and also to search out and extinguish any hidden fires. After lunch we discussed fire size up, strategy, fire fighting tactics and interior fire attack. We also discussed automatic sprinkler systems, different types and their operation. We touched on different types of sprinkler heads, we talked about wet type sprinkler systems, and we also talked about automatic deluge systems. I’ve had most of my experience with the automatic deluge systems, as these are the types we have at Thomas Hill power plant and the type I have worked with for the past 15 years. Instructors then discussed portable fire extinguishers and extinguishing agents. We talked about the four classes of fire and the common fire-extinguishing agents such as water, carbon dioxide, dry chemical, and halon. After brief discussion of fire ground safety we all took a written test which we had to pass before we were allowed to go on to the next step of our training at Union Electric's fire school in St. Louis, Missouri.On the last day of our training we were allowed to fight fires at Union Electric's fire school. We fought various fires using dry chemical, water and foam. We also donned full bunker gear with SCBA and watched a fire go from incipient stages all the way through to full combustion. During this training we learned the importance of full bunker gear and SCBA as we were protected from the 1200-degree heat along with the noxious fumes of the smoke. We performed an interior fireattack on a single story building as well as a two-story building. We performed search and rescue in a blazing two-story building while we also completely ventilated the building and performed proper salvage and overhaul techniques. In doing so we practiced hazard communication techniques along with the incident command system we had learned. After student evaluations and closing remarks we concluded our forty-hour structural fire brigade training....
