Six new recruits from the Arcata Fire Protection District were welcomed aboard Saturday afternoon with a raging structure fire in a Bayside Victorian.
According to AFPD Assistant Chief Desmond Cowan, the new firefighters were attending their first day of academy training when the blaze was reported, shortly after 2:20 p.m.
According to a news release issued by the district, the fire, in the 2500 block of Old Arcata Road, was well-developed before it was discovered.
Fire personnel arrived at the scene to find the residence already 75 percent involved in fire. The attic was filled with smoke and flame, the release stated.
Attack lines were advanced into the house, while ventilation efforts took place on the roof.
But heat and flames forced firefighters to retreat, and an engine-mounted nozzle — called a deck gun — was used to suppress the blaze from a safe distance.
“There was a partial collapse of the roof over the front of the house,” Cowan said, “but no firefighters were in the house at the time.”
Firefighters from the Fieldbrook and Blue Lake volunteer fire departments assisted with suppression efforts, which lasted almost three hours.
Residents were not home at the time of the blaze, which was reported by a passerby. Cowan said damage estimates were not immediately available, but the house sustained extensive fire, smoke or water damage throughout. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Cowan said the firefighters-in-training performed well. “They’re all experienced volunteers, so they stepped right in and did what they’re supposed to do.”
Two of the six had not yet been issued safety gear, but Cowan said they were able to assist away from the fire.
The new recruits are part of a hiring wave made possible by the district’s successful passage of a new benefit assessment in July.
The new-hire academy will last 17 days, and Cowan said graduates will be assigned their first shifts on Christmas Eve.
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