Although Railroad Junction Day was a fun-filled day of entertainment, it served a dual purpose for the Flomaton Fire Department, MedStar and Chands Care 6 out of Milton.
One of the highlights each year at the festival in Flomaton is a demonstration from the fire department using its jaws of life to free people trapped inside a wrecked vehicle. Crowds gather as the firemen use their tools to cut away the metal to get to the victims trapped inside.
It's not only entertaining for the crowd that gathers around, it's a training exercise for the firemen, ambulance workers and this year added the helicopter.
Volunteers get inside the vehicle. This year they included Rebecca Turner, the front passenger, Morgan Miller, the driver, and Jamie Wilson, the backseat passenger. The salvaged vehicle was donated by Brantley's Automotive.
Flomaton Fire Chief Steve Stanton said the addition of the Chands Care 6 helicopter was a big plus.
“We don't just do this for the crowd, we do it for training,” Stanton said. “I used my junior firemen to do the cutting with experienced firemen guiding them through it.”
He said it's very important for the younger firemen to learn to use the jaws of life.
“What happens tomorrow when some of the senior firemen are at work and we have a bad wreck at Highway 113 and 31 and it's junior fireman who have to take over?” Stanton said. “We want the junior firemen prepared to cut you out. The more you train the better you get.”
Stanton said he joined the fire department when he was 18 and didn't know what a set of jaws of life were about. He said he and other firemen do a lot of training on using the jaws.”
He said they try to do several jaws training classes every year.
“You learn something new every time,” he said. “The first thing you think is you have to get them out as quick as possible. That's the goal, but if you do it wrong it can cause more harm.”
“We want firemen to get to the scene and know what to do on instinct,” he said.
Saturday's event had Turner removed from the vehicle, placed on a stretcher and hauled to the helicopter that had landed near Flomaton First United Methodist Church.
He said the exhibition not only helped trained firemen, it provided training for ambulance workers and the helicopter crew.
