Kristopher O'Brien and Fred Klotzer returned the Mint Hill Fire Station Sunday afternoon just one day after a different training exercise went horribly wrong.
"Adrenaline rush - it was an adrenaline rush. I mean, I've never been in that situation before," Klotzer said.
The two firefighters were inside the Old Idlewild Country Club building during a controlled burn Saturday. The fire was intentionally set as part of a demolition project at Queen's Grant Prepatory School. The school plans to rebuild and expand on the land.
But in a flash, the fire grew out of control. "It was a very, very big structure and the room we were working in was very large.
"There wasn't a lot of supporting beams," O'Brien said. "Out of nowhere, the ceiling just came down. And when it came down, the fire came down with it too."
O'Brien's metal helmet became twisted from the damage. "This helmet saved my life," he said.
O'Brien was knocked to one knee, but was determined not to fall on his stomach and get trapped.
Klotzer said he escaped the building a better firefighter. "I'm kind of glad that I was in it. I'm kind of glad that I experienced that, because that's once in a lifetime. That's every firefighter's nightmare. And I experienced it, I learned from it," Klotzer said. Both firefighters said their perspective has changed since the near disaster. O'Brien has a seven month old son, and Klotzer has been on the job for less than three months.
"It makes you enjoy every day, and live every single day out," O'Brien said.
Officials said a burn instructor from Central Piedmont Community College was also hurt.
Idlewild Fire Assistant Chief Brian White said weeks of preparation and training beforehand helped to ensure all three people made it out with only minor injuries.
"We had all the backup procedure rescue teams and so forth in place. They were able to evacuate all firemen out of building very quickly,” White said.
The firefighters suffered minor burns, while another person suffered a sprained ankle.
Several of Queen's Grant teachers and families were also outside to witness the fiery action. Parent Ric Allen said he hopes the experience was an eye-opener for the young onlookers as well.
"I tried to get a lot of these kids out there to understand how dangerous fire can be. I think it's a really good lesson for the kids to see exactly the type of damage that can take place,” Allen said.
Nearly 70 firefighters and EMS from Matthews, Mint Hill, and Matthews participated in the fire training exercise.
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