Kankakee Area Career Center

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SCBA Training

Self Contained Breathing Apparatus

There are many interesting and cool components when it comes to Fire-Rescue-EMR training. One of those aspects of the firefighting curriculum at the Kankakee Area Career Center students look forward to is learning how to operate on the fire-ground wearing their self-contained breathing apparatus, SCBA for short.

The first step in this training process is to have students understand the limitations of the SCBA. With knowledge and hands-on training, students become familiar with the technical aspects and eventually must be able to "don" the apparatus within 60 seconds. The term "don" refers to being able to completely dress in appropriate clothing and SCBA equipment in those 60 seconds.

Once that is accomplished the students learn to get comfortable wearing the cylinders on their backs and breathing the air for extended periods of time.

KACC Fire-Rescue-EMR Students engaged in SCBA practice.

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Students practice a variety of emergency procedures such as the low-profile maneuver that allows them to shift the cylinders and fit through tight spaces.

Next, they learn the quick-release maneuver which permits them to crawl through very small spaces. It involves removing the SCBA harness from their backs and pushing it in front of them, all the while still breathing air from the cylinder.