Vermont firefighter trains ANP in Bamyan

BAMYAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – In just three short days, U.S. Army Spc. Travis Hale worked closely with Afghan National Police officers, teaching them the knowledge and skills necessary to make them into more effective firefighters for the citizens of Bamian City Aug. 7-9.

Hale was asked to help the ANP with firefighting techniques after a recent fire in Bamyan demonstrated a need for additional training on the equipment they owned.

“I took what they knew and expanded on it,” said Hale, a Jericho, Vt., native.

Hale, a combat engineer with Headquarters, Headquarters Company, 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, works as a volunteer firefighter for the Underhill-Jericho Fire Department in Vermont when he is not drilling with his Vermont National Guard unit, or deployed to Afghanistan.

The first day of the three-day training consisted of, among other things, driving to the local river and learning how to pump water into the truck. With the townspeople watching, the ANP demonstrated how to operate the equipment properly.

“The training went extremely well,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Peter S. Ladensack, an infantryman and Colchester, Vt., native, assigned to the Bamyan Embedded Training Team, 86th IBCT. “It was very good to see they had a female involved.”

The second day included learning how to use emergency rescue equipment, to include a saw used for cutting open parts of cars and getting into spaces otherwise inaccessible. The three police officers being trained each took turns at sawing a piece of steel using various sawing methods.

The final day brought everything they had learned into perspective. Hale instructed the firefighters on how to plot possible water-gathering points on a map, the various dangers of firefighting, the three components of a fire, and finally, the officers had some fun learning how to hold the fire hose correctly, using different techniques for different situations.

This was certainly a job well done, and everyone involved felt satisfied in what they had accomplished in the limited time together, said Hale. “They have much to learn, like drivers training, entering a building, and the use of oxygen.”

Hale said he sees further opportunity for additional training, and plans to research and attemp to acquire essential pieces of equipment for the Bamyan Fire Department. Number one thing on the list: Nozzles for the main fire hoses.

Despite the limited time he had for training, Hale said he is confident that the ANP who attended his training are better prepared to perform their duties as firefighters for Bamyan.