Farmington Hills were “firefighters for the day” during the Fire Operations 101 program held October 6 at the Oakland Community College Combined Regional Emergency Services Training (CREST) Center in Auburn Hills.

City council member Dr. Ken Massey and Human Resources Director John Randle experienced simulated activities such as resuscitating a cardiac arrest victim, rescuing a person trapped in a vehicle, and extinguishing a structure fire. Experienced firefighters supervised the civilian “newbies”.
“We greatly appreciated members of our City’s leadership team taking the time to gain further insight into our profession,” Fire Chief Jon Unruh said in a press release.
Inspector Jim Etzin, Emergency Medical Services Coordinator and President of the Farmington Hills Firefighters Association, added, “This is another example of the unwavering support we receive from the City Council, City Manager, and residents of Farmington Hills.”

Massey said it was an awesome experience that he’ll be talking about for a long time to come, “While we had just a taste of what our firefighters/paramedics experience, it provided tremendous insight into the challenges and stresses that they face on a daily basis.”
Randle was impressed with the well-planned event that was executed in a safe and secure manner, “The most rewarding part was seeing how much pride the firefighters have for such a challenging and important job.”

The Farmington Hills Fire Fighters Association, Unruh, and OAKWAY Mutual Aid Group fire chiefs from Bloomfield Township, Ferndale, Madison Heights, Rochester Hills, Southfield, Waterford, and West Bloomfield, hosted the event.