MANCHESTER, Conn. — “Learning the ropes” is what a half-dozen Manchester firefighters were taking part in behind Firehouse #1 to begin the week.
Atop a story-high house prop, the firefighters were taking a refresher course on “bailout kits” – each member of the department is now equipped with one.
Asst. Chief Gordon Macmillan said, “It’s definitely a lifeline, the kit sits in a pocket.”
The first bailout kits arrived around three years ago after the Manchester Fire Department received a grant for them and, since then, each firefighter has been trained on how to use them.
Lt. Ray Marconi, who helped to apply for the grant and now trains his fellow firefighters, said, “It’s a personal escape system in case somebody gets themselves in a precarious situation," and that "we teach them how to use the kit and how to use the hook on the windowsill and then we also teach how to tie off from a remote object and go out a window.”
Macmillan said that bailout kits provide a last line of survival for a firefighter.
“A lot of times you are jumping out a window, it’s blackout conditions so we want to replicate that as best we can," Macmillan said.
He says more departments across the state should carry the kits, adding that “I think the next step of the evolution is carrying a bailout kit of some sort because the fire service is becoming increasingly dangerous for our personnel.”
After finishing instructing the firefighters, Marconi said, “Hopefully no one needs to use these (kits) but it's there in case it is needed.”
Jimmy Altman is a reporter at FOX61 News. He can be reached at jaltman@fox61.com. Follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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