Peabody teens offered chance to train with firefighters

PEABODY – The job of a firefighter has long been of great admiration and interest for young children mesmerized by the large flames and thick smoke. Now, Peabody teens will have the opportunity to explore their curiosities with a new program organized by the Peabody Recreational Department.Firefighters in Training (FIT) is a weeklong program that will give Peabody residents entering grades 7-9 a hands-on feel of what it’s like to douse a burning structure and investigate the blaze’s remains.The course will be taught by Peabody firefighters Joseph DiFranco, Jeff Maguire, Christopher Dowling, and several others willing to volunteer their time.CPR training and certification will take up the majority of day one. With the help of Atlantic Ambulance, the 25-30 something teens will walk away with skills that DiFranco believes to be “something we all need.”The second day will cover the technical aspects of a fire: what it does, how it works, why it burns things and how it progresses. Students will also learn how to extinguish a fire using various equipment.”It’ll be a lot of hands-on and classroom,” said DiFranco. “We want to keep the kids active.”Day three will focus on the Jaws of Life.”We’ll actually have a car up there that we’ll dismantle to show them how to use that great life-saving tool,” said DiFranco. “Kids will get limited hands-on experience with that.”The day will also give the youth a chance to explore the inner and outer workings of the fire truck.”They’ll learn what’s on it,” said DiFranco. “It’s not just a cool red truck driving down the street; it really has a purpose.”Things will get really interesting when firefighters go deep into discussion of fire investigations. The State Fire Marshal’s Office will bring one of the few K-9s trained to detect fire accelerants in the aftermath.Firefighters will use en empty trailer, donated by Wayside Storage, and set small fires throughout the interior. They’ll let them progress to the point to cause damage. The students will get an up close and personal look at how to extinguish the fire and uncover where it started, why it started, and what caused it to spread.By the fifth day, the kids will have to demonstrate all that they’ve learned through a series of relay races.”It should be an interesting week,” sad DiFranco, who sees the program as more than just a fun, summertime experience, but a life-saving lesson. “Fire is such a powerful and mystifying thing to kids. We’re trying to demystify fire and take the power away from it. In order to really understand it for what it is, you need to make it not something you’re in awe of?but something you can control.”The course will run Monday, Aug. 18 through Friday, Aug. 22 from 9-12 p.m., with the exception of Monday’s class, which will run from 9-1 p.m. It takes place at the Historic Fire Museum at Brooksby Farm. The cost is $50 per child for the entire week.To register, contact the Peabody Recreation Department at 978-536-7130 or by email at [email protected]. Space is limited.