Marion County Fire Rescue firefighters are on call 24 hours a day to provide advanced life support (ALS) emergency care to citizens. They have the manpower and equipment capabilities to respond to structure, brush and vehicle fires, as well as the following:

• Medical emergencies involving cardiac arrest, respiratory distress and trauma
• Vehicle accidents requiring extrication
• Hazardous materials incidents
• Technical rescues
• Natural disasters
• And many other emergencies

All MCFR firefighters are also either emergency medical technicians (EMTs) or paramedics, and many have specialized training in technical rescue, hazardous materials, fire safety inspection and more.

So what do firefighters do when they're not responding to emergencies? Train, train and train some more. Through extensive training that takes place for at least two hours each day, MCFR strives to provide all employees -- rookies and veterans – with the opportunity to refresh and sharpen their skills as well as the chance to learn new techniques and technologies.

EMS Training

MCFR employs some of the best training instructors in the state who teach dozens of fire and EMS classes to career and volunteer firefighters.

Firefighters routinely take additional classes in the following:

• Fire suppression
• Ventilation
• Search and rescue operations
• Emergency vehicle operations
• Pumping
• Hydraulics
• Hose operations
• Fire prevention
• Blueprint reading
• Fire codes and standards
• Emergency medical services
• And many other training classes

Equipping the Leaders of Tomorrow

The Support Services Division under the direction of Division Chief Bart Walker provides an extensive orientation process to ensure that new firefighters, EMTs and paramedics are prepared for what they may experience in the field. At the end of this orientation, the recruits take an oath of appointment, promising to dedicate their best efforts to saving lives and protecting property.

MCFR's mobile, live-fire training simulator allows firefighters to practice fire suppression tactics such as ventilation and search and rescue. It also gives rescuers the chance to practice identifying dangerous flash over conditions, which occur when a room's temperature gets so hot that everything in it ignites.

The simulator is a 53-foot propane-gas-powered steel trailer equipped with thermal insulation, moveable walls and an internal stairwell. This powerful training tool also enables firefighters to test new equipment such as bunker gear, thermal imaging cameras and other firefighting essentials in a safer, more controlled, environment.