CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The sweltering heat can cause some serious hazards for firefighters battling blazes.
The Chesapeake Fire Department has a special tool that helps firefighters all over the Hampton Roads region. It’s already been used numerous times in this latest heatwave.
“We’ve been down to North Carolina before, we’ve been to Virginia Beach. We’ve been all over the place,” said firefighter, Corey Barker.
It’s called the “rehab” truck, which has hot weather essentials like water, towels and air conditioning. Barker mans the truck as it heads to different structure fires.
“I’m their lifeline that I gotta make sure that their safety and health is more important than trying to send them back in when they’re not ready,” said Barker.
Captain David King said the conditions can prove dangerous as firefighters have about 50 pounds of gear on as they fight fires.
“We try to really engrain in the new guys to stay hydrated the night before work at least,” said King.
He said the physical effects really don’t come until after the work is finished.
“It’s usually about 20, 30 minutes later once you get out and your body just crashes,” said King.
The fire department responded to about three structure fires over the past few days during the heatwave. The vehicle traveled as far as Currituck County to help out.
About 13 heat-related illness calls were made to the department over this latest stretch of heat. Most involved people overexerting themselves during outdoor activities.