SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Kyle Blakeslee and Rachel Van Beek have spent months preparing for this weekend. They’ll be teaching 19 people everything from how to use a fire extinguisher to how they put out a car fire.
“I’m excited to see how it’s going to go. Like I said, we’ve been planning this for at least a good six months. Put a lot of work into it,” said Van Beek, a captain with Sioux Falls Fire Rescue. “I hope everyone has a good time. Looking forward to the feedback on things we can improve on things, that went well.”
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Although everyone was welcome to apply for the Ignite academy, the weekend will focus on women in firefighting.
“Just an idea of another fire department that’s done something similar. And I said, let’s do it, let’s try it. So that kind of got the ball rolling. And then I talked to Rachel, and the other women of Sioux Falls Fire Rescue, and we decided it was something cool that we could try,” said Blakeslee, fire and life safety educator for SFFR.
This is the first year of Ignite Academy, but both women are confident it won’t be the last.
“I think our ultimate goal is to hopefully get more applicants. If they’re not 21, when they are 21, or hopefully we get more applicants for for Sioux Falls Fire Rescue,” said Blakeslee. “But, all in all, just create leaders and teamwork and make sure that everybody has a good time and we all work together and show them that it’s not just about fighting fire. It’s about a lot of different things. And sometimes we get to fight fires, too, which is really fun.”
