SAN DIEGO --
Dozens of people in East County are learning how to fight fires in the early stages.
More than 50 people underwent the hands-on fire training Monday, as part of a weeklong emergency response seminar for those who live on and around the Sycuan reservation. The special training comes as the first anniversary of the October 2007 firestorm approaches.
Firefighters used a simulator to start a fire, and the participants had to put it out using extinguishers.
"We try to teach everybody how to use the extinguisher to kind of minimize the emergency, per se, and keep the fire down to a certain level when it's not controllable," said Sycuan Fire Department engineer Carlos Virgen.
Fire officials said the training is especially needed if firefighters are stretched thin and can't respond right away to a fire.
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