High above the stage inside the Flathead Valley Community College’s dark theater, 22-year-old Trent Cook clutches a heavy rope that holds a dangling stretcher basket with a man inside. Wearing a new Kalispell Fire Department shirt and a red helmet, Cook lets the rope slip through his hands one inch at a time, gently lowering the man from the rafters to the ground.
The stage could be a house on fire; the man could be a heart-attack victim. A firefighter never knows exactly what the situation will be, but he or she needs to be prepared for anything. That’s what the department’s three captains – Rob Cherot, Kirk Pederson and Craig Fischer – are emphasizing during the two-month training academy for the city’s three newest firemen.
Cook, Jim Dyk, 28, and Jason Schwaiger, 38, are the latest additions to the city fire department thanks to a federal grant called the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER). The new members have three more weeks of training before they can officially start what they hope is a long career in Kalispell.
“I’ve been wanting to get on with the fire department ever since I was a kid,” said Cook, who has moved back to town with his wife after living in Arizona for more than two years. “It was pretty surreal and it didn’t really hit until I was actually starting and started training. It’s hard to believe I’m here.”
Staffing at the city fire department has been a stormy subject in recent months with the possibility of layoffs looming last spring. But after concessions were agreed upon that prevented any cuts, the situation appears to have calmed, at least for the time being.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency grant will expire in 16 months and then the city will be faced with a decision about funding for these three recruits, who are paid for solely by SAFER.
But for now, the firefighters have training to do.
“We’re learning a lot and really getting to know the Kalispell way,” Schwaiger said.
“They’re eager to learn,” Cherot said. “They’re really excited about being here and learning new things. It makes it easy to teach.”
The training of a firefighter encompasses a wide array of possible situations – from facing house fires or medical emergencies to dealing with hazardous materials or car accidents on the highway. Basically anything that happens within the city limits is within the realm of possibility.
“It’s a totally different game. When I was hired I was just a basic firefighter,” said Pederson, one of the department’s captains who moved from the West Valley volunteer department to the city 17 years ago. “Now these guys know a lot more than I did at that point, which is cool. They’re coming in prepared. They know what they’re doing.”
Pederson said the majority of calls are for medical responses. In 2010, the department responded to 2,191 “rescue” calls and 553 fire calls, according to city data.
Once the newest recruits finish learning the ropes, they will join the others working normal shifts, rounding out the staff at three groups of 10 men working at one time.
“If we can keep our staffing where we’re now at then we’re pretty comfortable safety-wise,” Pederson said.