Mission, Texas- Some firefighter related skills of Veterans Memorial High School (VMHS) student Alexis Aranda will be put to the test in upcoming state competitions. Aranda qualified for the state Texas Public Service Association state events to be held in early April.
Aranda will compete in two events. One is the Firefighter Bunker Gear Race. In this timed event, contestants are challenged with correctly donning protective clothing/gear for firefighters. Students are not only judged on completing the task as quickly as possible, but also on a correct fit for all items. The equipment includes: fire bunker coat with liner, wristlets and collar; fire bunker pants, liner, and suspenders; fire boots; fire gloves; fire protective hood; fire helmet with protective ear flap, chin strap, and visor.
The second event will be the Firefighter Search Maze. In this event, students conduct a primary search of the maze area to rescue a “baby” as fast as they can. The students also are challenged with correctly identifying equipment they encounter while in the maze. All of this is done while also wearing firefighting protective gear, and blacked out goggles.
While Aranda is a VMHS student, he takes the firefighter courses through a new program at Mission High School (MHS).
The state competition will be held in El Paso, Texas April 6-8.
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