Deployment presents challenge for firefighters

  • Published
  • By Maj. Ann Peru Knabe
  • 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) --  The sandy desert terrain and base infrastructures in Southwest Asia pose new challenges to Airman 1st Class Eric Theer, a firefighter deployed from Beale Air Force Base, Calif.

"I'm used to fighting grass fires back home," said the 20-year-old Airman assigned to the 379th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron. "There's no grass here, and there's quite a few more airframes to protect in a tightly confined setting."

At Beale, Airman Theer would respond to fire emergencies for the U2S, KC-135 Stratotanker and T-38 Talon aircraft. Here he could be responding to one of more than a dozen different types of aircraft.

Airman Theer is just one of more than 50 firefighters deployed to Southwest Asia. Coming from six different Air Force bases around the United States, few of the firefighters knew each other before deploying; they quickly overcame this hurdle.

"It's often overlooked, but it takes time for a team to gel," said Master Sgt. James R. Giddens, the assistant chief of training. "Our firefighters have less than two weeks to learn how to fight together to protect base assets. Teamwork is essential for our mission."

The mission of the 379th ECES fire department is provide professional fire suppression forces, highly capable rescue crews and aggressive fire prevention. The fire department also provides education programs to protect the lives and property of the members of the installation and 379th Air Expeditionary Wing.

Firefighters work out of three firehouses, protecting Coalition Compound, the flightline and "ops town." A short supply of water forces firefighters to rely on additional agents to fight fires.

"Water is like gold around here," said Sergeant Giddens. "So we depend a lot on complimentary agents such as (aqueous film forming foam), dry chemical and Halon to fight fires."

In addition to protecting aircraft and base assets here, the fire department also has several "flex team" groups comprised of seven firefighters that travel to outlying bases that lack fire departments.

"We've deployed flex teams to different locations in Afghanistan," explained Senior Master Sgt. Tom Westort, the 379th ECES fire chief. "These mobile teams provide firefighting support at remote bases operated by the Army when our aircraft land with supplies."

The fire chief said the flex teams stay at the remote forward operating bases for short periods of time, only long enough to ensure the aircraft and aircrew are protected from fire hazards.

"For example, the team might go into an Army base that flies special ops helicopters," he said. "Most of the time these bases don't have radar. Our firefighters convoy with the Army to the landing zone and provide fire protection and safety when the planes land, deliver supplies and take off."

Once aircraft fly out, flex teams go to another assignment. 

Team members completed combat skills training at Fort Sill, Okla., prior to deploying, increasing interoperability with Army troops on the ground. Sergeant Westort said Army units typically do not have firefighters among their Soldiers. 

Other firefighters keep busy with a schedule that requires them to work 24 hours on, then 24 hours off. They typically answer more than 300 calls a month, with five reportable fires a week. In addition to structural calls, teams respond to about 60 emergency situations involving aircraft and Airmen on the flightline. Sometimes the incidences are simple work injuries, other times more serious. 

Sergeant Westort said the fire department also assists with mutual aid responses, like the recent fire in a nearby camp where third country nationals live. The fire department provided four trucks on scene, increasing host nation response capabilities by 100 percent. Only one of the 15 trailers burned to the ground, and no one was injured.

In addition to responding to crises, firefighters regularly train in different strategies and tactics to mitigate fires and other emergencies.

"We're much busier here than my home unit," said Senior Airman James Ridges, a firefighter deployed from the 316th CES at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. "We've got more than a dozen different types of aircraft to look out after and need to be proficient on all of these."

Airman 1st Class Jenna Deanda, a fire department dispatcher, agrees the workload is different.

"The volume of calls we receive here far exceeds the volume of calls at my home station," said the Airman deployed from the 316th CES at Andrews AFB. "We experience a variety of calls ranging from medical responses to in-flight emergencies. It's also unique because we are working with aircraft from coalition partners from around the world, like the Aussies and Brits."

In addition to firefighters and dispatchers, the department also includes Airmen proficient in logistics, training and fire prevention.