Training pays off for Minot AFB firemen Published Jan. 14, 2014 By Airman 1st Class Lauren Pitts Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs MINOT, N.D. -- The continual training the Minot Air Force Base Fire Department often accomplished through controlled fires and classroom academics was put to the test when a call came through for a house fire on Highway 83 just outside of the main gate, Thursday, Jan.2, 2014 at approximately 8 p.m. Due to the Air Force Base's direct access to the highway, the central dispatcher contacted the base fire department before the Glenburn Fire Department, which is approximately eight miles north of the base. "Because our priority missions are the aircrafts on base, we had to receive permission before leaving the base to attend to the house fire," said Paul Lambert, assistant chief of training for the 5th Bomb Wing Civil Engineer Squadron, Fire Department. "Once we cleared it through our commander, we were on scene of the fire within two to three minutes." As the seven-man team left base, the smoke and flames were clearly visible on the property almost directly across from the north gate to the base. Once on scene, the fire fighters were in the house within two minutes and had defeated the fire within another five. At the time of the emergency call, only living room curtains were on fire, explained Lambert, however once the Airmen arrived, the entire living room was engulfed in flames. "It was a good thing we were called," Lambert said. "In the three minutes it took us to get there, so much more damage had been done. Had we waited for the Glenburn Fire Department, the whole house may have been burned to the ground." Thanks to the intense and persistent training of the Minot AFB Firefighters, and the Air Force's awesome fire prevention program, the team was able to contain and beat the fire without anyone being hurt, said Lambert. The incident was also the first real world experience for three of the Airmen. "When we pulled up on scene, I was trying to remember all of my training," said Airman 1st Class Alex Burbaker, one of the three firefighters with the 5th CES/CEF here, who saw their first fire that night. "This is what we train for." Senior Airman Justin Sigler, another 5 CES firefighter, described his first fire as an adrenaline rush, but also as the ultimate training tool. "This was the first time we weren't in a controlled environment with a flame," said Sigler. "We really had to fall back on what we've been taught and what we know." After cooling the rest of the home to ensure another flame would not erupt, the seven-man fire team from Minot AFB returned to the base to resume training and maintain readiness until the next time they are called to duty. "We love our job because it's fun, it's exciting, and it's an adrenaline rush," said Lambert. "But we love it mostly because we are helping the community."