Members of Edison F.D. participate in safety course
BY DAN NEWMAN Staff Writer

EDISON — Six members of the Edison Fire Department recently completed Homeland Security Training at the Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) in Anniston, Ala., a facility that is operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Capt. Dwyane Borwegen, firefighter/EMT Mike Sacchi, and firefighters Matt Colletto, Peter Yackel, Daniel Wood and Richard Rodriguez attended the five-day course along with first responders from around the country, in an effort to learn how to respond to real-world incidents involving chemical, biological, explosive, radiological and other hazardous materials. Edison's firefighters participated in training exercises that involved all of the above.

"Over the past few years, there has been a lot of talk about bombs and major disasters that have occurred, such as 9/11, so for us, this was an opportunity to gain plenty of knowledge on how bombs are made and how to combat the problems that may exist," Yackel said.

To make the training more realistic, it took place in a true toxic environment using chemical agents.

Yackel said he went to the program after signing up for it and was cleared to go by Battalion Chief Robert Sofield of the Edison Fire Department. While he was glad to go down to Alabama, once he got there, he and the rest of his fellow firefighters were in for something they may not have anticipated.

"We may not have realized what we were in for," Yackel explained. "Each day we had a 5 a.m. wakeup call, and we went hard all day long until 5 p.m. At the beginning and the end of the five days, we had to take blood tests because we were exposed to so many things."

He also spoke about how the conditions weren't exactly ideal.

"We stayed in what felt like old-style United States Army barracks," Yackel said.

At the end of the five days, Yackel and the five others were able to train others about weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

"We really did learn so much down there," Yackel said. "If I had the chance to do it again, I definitely would."