LEARNING THE ROPES: Claremore Fire Department completes rope training

Chelsea Weeks, Claremore Daily Progress, Okla.
·2 min read

Jun. 24—Claremore firefighters spent three days this week hanging off the side of a 40-foot building as part of rope training.

The Oklahoma State University Fire Safety Training unit spent Wednesday, Thursday and Friday working with Claremore firefighters, teaching them how to work a climbing rig, how to ascend and repel, and create different types of knots.

"The skill base they have there is then translated into anything from hoisting that tool up on a roof during a fire for vertical ventilation, to stabilizing vehicles, anything like that," said Training Officer and Health and Safety Coordinator Jason Philpot.

Philpot said the ropes training can help in rescue type situations.

"So it's just a good fundamental overall training that they're doing right now with ropes, knots, and equipment around that as refresher training for across the board in any category," he said. "We can use those things as a tool. Past that, they're getting a little bit more advanced training on the actual repelling side — where for more kind of labor intensive or more specialized type rescue training, they'd have the skill set to be able to repel."

Philpot said training provides the skills needed to do the job in an effective manner.

All 43 shift firefighters serving at the Claremore Fire Department strive to complete 240 hours of training annually.

"We constantly do need to be trained, and we are constantly in some way, shape or form, we do train," Philpot said.

Philpot said the hours of training are broken down into the four types of calls: fire, EMS, hazardous material and rescue. Philpot said each of those categories have subcategories with different aspects like auto vehicle, extrication, rope-type rescue, water rescue and more.

Philpot has been in the industry for 10 years and said the training is updates and kept relevant.

"For the most part, it's just the same job it's always been just, you know, the requirements are just to stay highly skilled, trained and ready to respond to whatever the incident may be," he said.