The Lewis-Arriola Fire Department proved their mettle in a regional competition with other fire departments, and brought home the coveted sweepstakes trophy.
Every year, volunteer firefighters from departments in Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico meet for trainings and competitive skill-tests during the Tri-State Firemen’s Association Conference, held July 30-August 1 in Albuquerque.
“Everyone did really well, and we’re really proud to bring the trophy back to Colorado and display it in our station,” said Levi Hill, team captain for Lewis-Arriola. “New Mexico has held it for too long.”
Southwest Colorado was well represented with firefighting teams from Dolores, Rico, Mancos, and Lewis-Arriola. This year’s host was El Segundo Fire, from Peabody Energy.
Competitions are time based, and include rolling out lines, hooking them together, and spraying a target, plus other gear tests.
Six of the events are weighted with points for the overall sweepstakes winner. Individuals and teams compete for fastest times and most hilarious comedy skit.
“Brian Stiegelmeyer got Colorado off to a great start by winning the one-man event for Lewis-Arriola,” Hill said.
They then swept the five-man event, with Dolores Fire finishing in third place. Mancos Fire finished 2nd in the four-man event. And Rico Fire had an impressive 2nd place finish in the six-man event, the toughest challenge requireing excellent team work.
Perhaps the winning ticket for bringing home the trophy was a good performance by Lewis-Arriola in the comedy skit. They took second with a skit based on The Little Rascals.
“Usually we just wing it, but this year we put some thought into it and even had some props,” Hill said. “We did it on the scene were the clubhouse burns down, and one guy was dressed up as alfalfa.”
More serious training and workshops were also held during the conference, including swift-water rescue techniques and Rapid Intervention Team tactics, a protocol used to save firefighters in trouble.
The teams representing Southwest Colorado are a very tight-knit group and support each other during the competition, Hill said.
One goal of promoting the competition is to attract more volunteer firefighters for the local district.
“Rural firefighters are a real brotherhood who support each other in the name of public safety,” Hill said. “We’re in need of more recruitment of volunteers. We offer free training in fire fighting and rescue, skills they can use later on to get good paying jobs.”
For more information on how to volunteer, call (970) 882-7718.
jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com
