| | |  Americas & Beyond | September 2008 
Mexican Fire Crew Trains in Sacramento
 Sandy Louey - Sacramento Bee
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Firefighting knows no borders, whether it's battling a blaze in Sacramento or Mexico.
The mission is the same: Rescuing people from fires and accidents. Preventing flames from destroying homes and businesses.
In the spirit of brotherhood, 25 Mexican firefighters were in the Sacramento region last week, picking up training and tricks from their local counterparts.
On Sept. 9, they spent the day at the Cosumnes Community Services District Fire Department training center in Elk Grove. There, they donned protective gear and equipment, some of it unfamiliar. They worked on fire suppression techniques and teamwork in a training tower and battled propane fires.
Most instructors were bilingual, but some of the bomberos spoke English and helped with translation.
"Stick together with your teams," Cosumnes battalion chief Sean Stumbaugh told them. "Stay hydrated."
Other training topics included removing people from crashes, safety, emergency medical service, and engine and truck operations.
In addition to Cosumnes Fire, the area departments providing training were Folsom Fire, Lincoln Fire, Sacramento City Fire, West Sacramento Fire, Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District and the Sacramento County Airport System.
José González, a firefighter with the Mexicali Fire Department, said he likes learning new techniques and tools.
"It helps out a lot," he said.
The Bombero Program is a partnership between California and Mexican fire departments that started more than 40 years ago when Turlock firefighters invited bomberos to visit their department, said Al Meraz, a Cosumnes firefighter who helped coordinate the Sacramento area program. Departments throughout California take turns hosting the bomberos, with the Sacramento region stepping in every three years, he said.
Mexican firefighters have helped fight past blazes in Southern California, so the program benefits both sides, Meraz said.
The bomberos were housed by the area fire departments during their visit. Those departments also solicited donations to help defray program costs, which were close to $15,000, Meraz said.
Departments here also give surplus equipment to departments in Mexico. In February, Cosumnes Fire donated an aerial ladder truck, equipment and protective clothing to firefighters from Tepic, just north of Puerto Vallarta.
The donated equipment no longer complies with Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards, but is better than most Mexican firefighters have, said Fernando Vallejo of Sacramento City Fire.
Cosumnes Deputy Chief Tracy Hansen said the hope is that the bomberos will take what they've learned back to their own departments.
"We're like one big family," she said. "We want to make sure we share our knowledge and our resources with them so they're safe and trained."
slouey@sacbee.com |
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