Demonstrating the ongoing commitment to continuous learning, more than 30 West Grove Fire Company volunteers gave up their Saturday to train all day at the West Chester Fire Training Center on March 30.

The all-day training session featured continuous live-fire drills, giving firefighters and apparatus operators opportunities for hands on experience and skills training under realistic heat and smoke conditions. With Safety Officers setting real fires with pallets and hay, conditions allowed fire crews to respond, don breathing gear, stretch hose lines, and fight fires inside the Fire Training Center's structure.

Each scenario simulated an emergency response, with crews deploying lines, setting up ladders, performing ventilation, and conducting search and rescue. After each scenario, Officers discussed the response, answering questions and offering advice about how best to conduct the scenario. Crews rotated with everyone getting a chance to participate on multiple evolutions, and crews were always on standby for safety given the live fire situations. WGFC Line Officers rotated as well, serving as Incident Commanders, Crew Leaders and Operations Officers. A newer firefighters-in-training got experience in hose handling and nozzle operations, with newer operators getting hands on pump operations experience.

Safety reviews all day long followed a walkthrough and safety review at the start of the day. Our thanks to Springfield Fire Company -- Delaware County Station 44 -- for standing by at West Grove during the training day. The WGFC also thanks the West Chester Fire Department Training Center for the use of the facility. The West Chester Fire Department Training center is jointly operated by the First West Chester Fire Company, the Good Will Fire Company, the Fame Fire Company.