“This is part of the state test. You don’t make this, you go home,” barked firefighting instructor Paul Yakowenko to a class of recruits from Blackhawk Technical College last week.
Yakowenko was teaching a basic technique: passing through a 16-inch gap between two studs in a burning house in full gear, including a mask and air tank.
The training at the Janesville Fire Department’s training center was part of a course called Firefighter 1.
The state requires 60 hours of instruction before a recruit can go on a call.
Many fire departments require additional training, driven by the fear of lawsuits from damage or injury resulting from wrong decisions by young volunteers, said Rob Balsamo, fire science coordinator at Blackhawk Tech.