More than a third of the Geneseo Fire Department’s emergency responders are students. They are a lifeblood when the siren sounds.
Story by Kris Dreessen Photos by Keith Walters ’11
eat blasts Mike Lanni ’12 as he follows his partner on his hands and knees into the burning building. The air is choked with blinding smoke. He peers through a sliver of sightline where the grey has lifted, looking for signs of life before standing to search the room. Only the blinking red and green lights of air packs pulse in the blackness. Lanni moves quickly and methodically, one hand on his partner’s pant leg, the other sweeping a metal bar back and forth, feeling around, over everything solid it touches, so as not to miss a victim. They cover the entire room and then back down the staircase to search another level — feet first, then knees, then hands, Lanni thumping his bar on each step to make sure he won’t fall through. In the basement, he hits a wall of wet, white smoke that is streaming out from where another squad is quenching the blaze. No longer does he walk toward fire thinking about what could go wrong or the consequences if he misses a victim as his air pack hisses away precious minutes. Staying calm and performing in chaos are now second nature. •••
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Winter 2012
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