Firefighters met in Crawford County to train how to handle catastrophic propane fires
GRAYLING, MI -- Michigan is one of the largest consumers of propane in the country.
The gas makes our lives a little more comfortable, but it can also be potentially dangerous and that's why Thursday night fire crews met in Crawford County to train for propane fires.
Imagine going face to face with 2,000 degree flames. That was the training in Grayling tonight, where they prepared for propane disasters.
When a summer cookout goes bad, it goes bad really quick. If propane flames get out of hand, call 911, because only trained firefighters could put an end to the inferno.
"Propane emergencies, they are far and few between them, and that's why we go out and do this training because firefighters seldom see a propane emergency," said Brian Lincoln, the chairman of the Propane Emergencies Committee of the Michigan Propane Gas Association.
The Michigan Propane Gas Association put firefighters through catastrophic propane fires to give an idea of what they could potentially face.
And the potential is extremely intense. For example, the tank in your back yard could spit flames 30 feet into the air and the only way to put it out is by firefighter teamwork, a lot of water, and a brave hand reaching into the flames. Frederic Firefighter Michelle Rowden was on the front line.
“When you get up to the tank and you realize now I get to stick my hand through the safety curtain and turn off the valve, your heart just kind of goes thump, thump, thump," laughed Rowden.
"You can just feel the fire coming from underneath, yeah, it was definitely intense," said Bear Lake Firefighter Andrei Henegariu.
Both of the firefighters said they've never experienced anything like this before, but when the situation arises.
"It’s awesome, I think it's going to save a lot of lives," said Rowden.
The Michigan Propane Gas Association is trying to hit every fire department in the State of Michigan, and so far, more than 6,000 firefighters have been trained for propane disasters.
