May-June 2007 Alpine Barona East County El Cajon Grossmont ...

theZONE16Barona Sponsors UniqueTraining OpportunityIf you’ve ever wondered what it wouldbe like in your own barbeque, look nofurther than the Live Fire Simulator,owned and operated by North TreeInternational. Based out of Marysville,California, this 40’ trailer is deployedthroughout the country with the specificmission to put firefighters in heatintensive environments.Upon the request of Chief Sandoval, ofthe Barona Fire District, the simulatormade its way to San Diego County for atwo day training opportunity at BaronaFire. Because of the unique opportunity,regional fire agencies were invited toparticipate in this training. In attendanceon this day were the Barona Fire District,Cal Fire, Ramona Fire District, and theLemon Grove Fire Department.“It’s not uncommon for floortemperatures to be wellover 100û with the uppertemperatures more likely inthe 900û range”North Tree TechnicianThe propane fed fire belching prop, cantake a relatively friendly environmentand skyrocket upper level temperatureover 900û with the flick of a switch.Within this heated area is a maze of wallsand stairs that require crews tocoordinate their movements throughoutthe evolution while dealing with flareups.Operated by a complex setup ofcomputers and switches, TechniciansMitch Ward and Roger Zaucha canmonitor the progress of crews while inthe simulator. “It’s not uncommon forLemon Grove firefighters make entry on a prop intended to simulate flashover conditions.