Blazing a Trail Through Community Service A Night in the Life of Student Firefighters

Author: David Barker

For a few frenzied seconds, we owned Main Street. Then again, if you come barreling down any street in a fire engine, you're used to getting the right of way. Riding with some of Middlebury's finest last week, I gained a new appreciation for the professionals who keep us safe from fire. Unknown to me, seven of the 32 volunteer firefighters in the town are Middlebury College students.

You've probably seen them walking around campus with signature Middlebury Fire Department Carhartt jackets, or maybe you've seen a classmate sprinting out of a lecture after his pager starts beeping. The student crew, started in 1988, is on round-the-clock duty, always prepared to hightail it to the fire station in downtown Middlebury when a call comes in.

Eric Ambrette '04 sprints to his Oldsmobile on Adirondack View Road. Andrew Barriger '06 hops on his bike. While most calls don't lead to roaring, "Backdraft"-like blazes, the crew treats each call seriously.

One of the not-so-life-threatening calls summoned Ambrette and me to the station last Wednesday. I had just rediscovered that awe-inspiring feeling you get from standing next to a shiny, red fire engine when the mixed crew of adults and students immediately jumped into action.

Each volunteer went to an assigned locker where he or she threw on the bulky, fire-retardant armor - jacket, pants, boots and helmet in less than 10 seconds. A general alarm had been received from a business in town, and a minute later, I was being propelled into the cockpit of Engine 1.

Driver Tom Sullivan pulled a hard right onto Main Street, left hand on the wheel, right hand yanking the horn cord vigorously. Cars found the curb to make way for our brigade of two fire engines and one utility truck. Fire doesn't faze Sullivan, who says he likes to "find 'em hot and leave 'em wet." The call had come from the Vermont State Crafts Center in Frog Hollow. Ambrette hopped out in front of Ben Franklin to direct traffic with a flashlight.

He and I then proceeded into a smoke-free Craft Center where Welcker Taylor '06 and other volunteers were crowded around the smoke alarm. Turns out dust or some other foreign substance had clogged the head and triggered the alarm. Unlike the Middlebury College's alarms, which are wired to Public Safety, business and residential alarms go straight to the station.

Ambrette, still dressed for a run into flames, explained that calls like this one are common. He said the department responds to an actual fire a couple times each semester. Earlier this fall, the crew worked the East Middlebury General Store blaze, which took seven hours to suppress. The crew is also responsible for cleaning up hazardous materials after car crashes.

When space is available, the department takes applications for the student positions. The first year, known as "probation," involves up to eight hours of weekly training and certifications in First Aid, CPR and AED (Automatic External Defilibration).

Captain Myron Selleck has been with the department for 23 years, but his lineage stretches back much further as he is the third of four generations to volunteer at the station. With a few exceptions, he said Middlebury students have been a dependable resource. "Each core of students is stronger than the last," he said.

Back at the station, preparations were being made for the monthly meeting later that evening during which Barriger and Morgan Prust '06 would be voted in as full members. A handful of firefighters were busy in the kitchen, dishing up chicken potpie while others set tables. A game of pool built camaraderie that could only help the volunteers in situations when teamwork really counts.

"You're part of a brotherhood," said Chris Loeffler '04. The close ties fostered while working for the department are a big reason why two Middlebury alumni are still volunteers. One alum, Jason Oleet '00, who left Wall Street, now works in Middlebury and is an active member of MFD.

Save for a few cars, Main Street was dead as I walked back to campus. The adrenaline of two hours before having receded, I had a new-found respect for college students who choose to carry the dangerous responsibility of fighting fire while juggling academics and a social life. How easy can it be to tear yourself away from a party or date to speed down to the station?

"It's a way to integrate yourself into town," said Loeffler. Jon Duckworth '04 is in his third year of volunteer service and related a similar sentiment. "I was feeling that I wasn't doing much in the community," he said of his choice to join. Ambrette joined to realize a dream from childhood. "I always wanted to be a firefighter. This was my chance."