This past February, firefighters with the Bayonne Fire Department and a number of firefighters from the Paterson Fire Department made their way out to Garret Mountain Reservation in Woodland Park New Jersey to be trained as Ice Rescue Technicians, and to become qualified Ice Rescue Trainers.

 Trainees made their way onto the thin ice of Barbour Pond, under the experienced guidance of trainers from a Sparta New Jersey based company called Firefighter-One. The firemen, wearing thermal protective rescue suits, cut holes in the ice to prepare for simulated rescue activities. Many firefighters took turns being the mock victim in the hole, while the rescuers worked a number of rescue techniques on the ice and from the shore to pull the victim to safety.

 The training went on for five days, and was funded by a Federal Port Security Grant. Two days of classroom activity was followed by three days on the ice. The firefighters involved were issued Ice Rescue Training Credentials giving the Fire Department the ability to further train other members at no additional cost. Continue reading Bayonne Fire Department trained for Ice Rescue Emergencies →