Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, firefighters, in the blue hazerdous-material protection suits, decontaminate a Nirai firefighter during a joint training exercise Thursday. (Cindy Fisher / Stars and Stripes)
KADENA AIR BASE, Okinawa — A truck carrying canisters overturns.
Moments later, the Nirai Fire Department receives a call from a resident that an unusual smell is coming from one of the canisters.
The Nirai firefighters gear up to deal with a hazardous-material incident and quickly make a call to their counterparts at the Kadena Air Base fire department for assistance.
The scenario was part of a training exercise Thursday at the air base’s fire pit for 25 Nirai and 15 Kadena firefighters.
The two departments have a mutual aid agreement. The Nirai Fire department — responsible for communities surrounding the base — can call on Kadena for support, and Kadena can count on Nirai firefighters to assist in on-base incidents, said Chief Master Sgt. Rodolfo Gonzales, Kadena’s fire chief.
Although the two departments have yet to work an actual hazardous-material incident together, training helps work out any kinks if they do work together in a real situation, Kadena firefighter Tech. Sgt. Daniel Morris said.
In past joint training, the Nirai department discovered that its fire hoses did not fit the valves used by the Kadena department, Nirai Fire Department deputy Hiroshi Tsukayama said. The Nirai department has since bought adjusters to make their equipment compatible with Kadena’s, he said.
Working a hazardous-material incident requires more manpower than fighting a fire, Morris said. “It gives confidence in each other that we have each other’s back,” he said.
Both departments bring unique strengths to the effort, Morris said. Kadena has specialized equipment and experience, while the Nirai department knows the local communities, he explained.
During Thursday’s training, Nirai firefighters arrived on scene first, made an initial assessment and were in charge of rescuing victims and containing the hazardous-material leak. Kadena’s firefighters were in charge of decontamination efforts.
Kadena has provided most of the hazardous material training for Nirai’s firefighters, and “if an incident occurred on or off base, we have to work together, so seeing their improvement is very rewarding,” Kadena’s district chief Hirohito Kakazu said.
Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, firefighters, in the blue hazerdous-material protection suits, decontaminate a Nirai firefighter during a joint training exercise Thursday. (Cindy Fisher / Stars and Stripes)
Yuki Uechi, 25, a firefighter with the Nirai Fire Department, sprays water on two other firefighters to decontaminate them during a joint hazerdous-material training exercise. Water can be used to decontaminate about 90 percent of hazerdous materials, according to Chief Master Sgt. Rodolfo Gonzales, Kadena's fire chief. (Cindy Fisher / Stars and Stripes)
A firefighter with the Nirai, Okinawa, Fire Department rescues a "victim" during a joint hazerdous-material training exercise with the Kadena Air Base Fire Department at the base's fire pit Thursday. (Cindy Fisher / Stars and Stripes)
