Trip Through a Smoke Maze

Hi. I am a student currently enrolled in the fire science program at Harper College in Palatine, Illinois. Yesterday, in one of my classes, I went to a fire station and was able to go through their smoke maze, which the firefighters themselves use to train in. To start, we went through with a partner with the lights on to get a feel for what we were in for. Then, we went in groups of three with the lights turned off. It was pitch black. Unfortunately, we were not able to go in with the smoke turned on, but being in the dark was difficult enough. Our "mission" was to find a firefighter (dummy) who was trapped and running out of oxygen and bring him to safety. Our team was able to successfully complete our mission. Doing this activity was a great way to start to get a feel for what it will be like to be a career firefighter. I realize that this was nothing like actually being on the scene of a structural fire, but everyone has to start somewhere. I believe that being a firefighter is something that I will really enjoy doing and that it will be a rewarding career. Here is a link to the website of the fire station which I was at: http://www.bensenvillefpd.org/