News Release

Sept 22, 2003

Citizens' council to sponsor firefighter training

Early next month, the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council and several partners will make it possible for land-based firefighters from coastal Alaska to travel to Valdez for training in fighting shipboard fires.

The occasion is the third Marine Firefighting for Land-based Firefighters Symposium organized by the council. It takes place Oct. 1-3 and will result in college credit from the Prince William Sound Community College.

The curriculum is to include live exercises with hands-on training for fighting fires on small vessels, at tank farms, and on oil tankers (subject to the availability of a tanker). The training is needed because, in most small communities, the local land-based fire department is the only one available to respond to shipboard fires.
Marine firefighting is different from land-based firefighting in several ways. For example, marine firefighters have to have a dewatering plan for the vessel involved. Otherwise, the water used to extinguish the fire might sink the vessel.

The council's partners in the event include the Alaska Division of Emergency Services; Tatitlek Chenega Chugach, LLC; Prince William Sound Community College; City of Valdez; Alaska Tanker Company; SeaRiver Maritime; Polar Tankers; Crowley Marine; Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.; and the Southwest Alaska Pilots Association.
Instructors for the symposium are all firefighters from West Coast fire departments.

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council is an independent non-profit corporation whose mission is to promote environmentally safe operation of the Valdez Marine Terminal and the oil tankers that use it. The council's work is guided by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and its contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. The council's 18 member organizations are communities in the region affected by the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, as well as aquaculture, commercial fishing, environmental, Native, recreation, and tourism groups.

To obtain the text of this news release electronically, email a request to news@pwsrcac.org. The release will be emailed to you as a file attachment in Microsoft Word format. If you do not receive it within 15 minutes, or you have questions or need assistance, contact Stan Jones at the phone number or email address at the top of this release.