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Fire Academy students train to earn their certification. This year’s group will be the first to graduate from the program. photo by Bryce Gilbertson/Phoenix Yearbook
Susie Gibson•Editor-in-Chief
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rawling through blazing hot rooms dripping with thick smoke and searching for bodies is not uncommon for a few select students. In fact, it’s become almost routine. Last year, five Martin students were given the opportunity to begin training to become firefighters through the Arlington Fire Academy. They were the first group of students in Arlington to begin this two-year program, and they will also be the first to graduate from it in June.
“The program essentially spends a year and a half preparing you for the firefighting certification test we just took in December,” senior Brent Bousquet said. “We get to go out and train and do hands-on things, but we also have so sit through hours of classes and do lots of book work.” To do well in the hands-on portion of the training, trainees must be able to handle extensive physical and mental stress well. “You walk up the stairs and you can’t see anything,” Bousquet said. “You open a door and immediately feel the heat surround you. But even with the heat and smoke
Issue No. 3 4 February 2013 Martin High School
all around you, you still have to search for victims. I look at everyone as though they were my sibling, parent, or grandparent, because to someone else, they are.” The rigorous physical exertion is not the only thing the future firefighters train for. “The hardest thing about being a firefighter is the responsibility placed on you by the community,” senior Josh Berkley said. “Something we’ve always been told is, ‘When you put on your uniform, you’re like Superman.’ People look up to you and expect you to be able to solve whatever problem they’re having.” Now that they have taken their certification test, those who passed are able to be hired by fire departments in Texas as soon as they graduate, as long as they also get their EMT certification, which they will take later in the year. “For now, we go on ride-outs on all calls dispatched to the station whether it be fire, medical, traffic, or any other emergency,” Bousquet said. “We help out with small things, but we can’t actually get in the fire or accidents since we haven’t yet been hired by the city of Arlington.” The Fire Academy students have also created lifelong relationships after working in such intense environments with each other. “These guys are like my brothers,” Bousquet said. “We’ve gone through so much together. I trust them with my life.” Sophomores interested in joining can speak to their counselor about signing up. “Being in this program gave me a huge jump start on my career and saved me a lot of money,” senior Blake Cretsinger said. “It’s been an incredible experience, and I’ve learned so many things that I will continue to use for the rest of my life.”