Samara Mehta of Jericho could feel the scorching hot flames as she battled a raging storefront fire Thursday morning in Old Bethpage.
But even as she took off 70 pounds of firefighting equipment in 85-degree temperatures, Mehta, 17, was all smiles.
Mehta is one of 45 teens from volunteer fire departments across the region who have spent the week participating in a free camp at the Nassau County Fire Service Academy designed to simulate the grueling training and real-world experience of professional firefighters.
“You don’t realize how hot it is until you’re right up close to it,” Mehta said as she downed another bottle of water. “You can like feel it on your face and your neck. This whole experience has helped me gain such a greater respect for everyone in the fire department.”
Since 2015, the Nassau County Junior Firefighters Association has operated “Camp Fahrenheit 516,” a weeklong, state-funded program for students ages 14-17.
The teens, who come from firehouses across the county, perform rope drills, emergency evacuation procedures, second-story bailouts, forcible building entries and, of course, put out fires.
Camp attendees watch and learn at the Fire Academy in Old Bethpage Thursday.
Credit: James Carbone
“They’re getting the heat. They’re getting the smoke. They’re getting used to wearing all of their personal protective equipment,” said Robert Hughes, the academy’s chief instructor. “It’s about as real as you can get without actually taking them inside.”
On Thursday, as members of the media watched on, crews took turns extinguishing a minivan torched with gasoline before moving on to a first-story building fire.
And while the environment is controlled and run by trained firefighters, the work is very real.
“This is as close as they’re gonna get to actual real-life training,” said Jerry Presta, chairman of the Nassau County Junior Firefighters Association. “There’s not another camp in the entire country that does what we do. There’s no switch to turn off here.”
Across the state and throughout Long Island, fire departments have faced recruitment challenges, particularly in driving young people into the ranks, officials said.
But while volunteers are in short supply, firefighters continue to respond to a higher and more diverse call volume, from downed power lines and medical emergencies, to automobile accidents and flooded basements.
Program leaders said the camp provides participants with the knowledge that could ultimately drive them to pursue a career in firefighting once they are of legal age, typically 17 or 18.
Michael Reid, the past director of the State Firemen’s Association, said the teens learn more than just how to put out fires. They also learn about hydraulics, fire science, technology and team building, he said.
An instructor keeps watch as junior firefighters battle a blaze.
Credit: James Carbone
“Once you start doing this, it really becomes a lifestyle,” said Reid, a member of the Merrick Fire Department. “We talk about the fire service as a brotherhood. We’re a family. These kids are coming from different departments from all over Nassau County. But when we come together like this, they all work together as a team, much like the fire service.”
This year’s campers come from more than a dozen of the county’s 71 volunteer fire departments.
Some come from firefighting families. Others have virtually no experience, absent a few months of work at their local firehouse.
“This is bigger than me,” Steiger Devil, 16, of Elmont, said of the program’s mission. “Training to save lives … That’s better than chilling at the pool.”
Aiden Adycki, 17, of Malverne, said the camp is a challenge, particularly when the temperature goes up.
“It can get very sweaty and get very hot and it can be very tough,” he said. “But I love doing this. I love doing this work and I love hanging out with all my friends making new friends.”
Others, like Joseph Fox, 15, of Syosset, were lured by the adrenaline rush of the job.
“It’s been great facing your own fears and actually overcoming them,” Fox said of the camp.
Firefighting runs in the family for Cody Wehrum, 17, of Garden City. His father is a volunteer firefighter in Garden City. His uncle works for the New York City Fire Department, and Cody, who has been training for the past four years, works part time as an EMT in Mineola.
“It just runs in the family,” he said, “and I’m trying to carry on the tradition.”