When dealing with fire, every second counts. Thanks to hours of training and instruction, Polk County’s newest batch of volunteer firefighters now know how to make those seconds add up to positive results.

Sixteen volunteer firefighter recruits recently took part in a training exercise designed to bring them eye-to-eye with real life scenarios.

“This exercise is a culmination of all their training, this is the day where they put their knowledge to work,” said Rockmart Fire Chief Todd Queen. “I have been excited about everyone coming together to provide this type of experience for our volunteers. It’s very important for us to have this so we can better serve the residents.”

The training, which took place in Rockmart, was a joint effort between the Polk County Volunteer Fire Department, the Rockmart Fire Department and Redmond EMS.

As the fourth joint training event of its kind, this session taught new recruits how to properly attack and extinguish a vehicle fire. Instructors also placed recruits inside a “burn room” which mimics a typical size home.

An intentional fire is set, and recruits are brought into the room to observe the ways in which a fire can grow and spread. Certified instructors teach recruits how to properly vent and how to recognize the signs of impending flashover conditions. Flashovers take place when a build up of intense heat causes an entire room to instantly burst into flames, explained training officer Jason Shuman.

“We’re also covering forcible entry, search and rescue techniques and firefighter self rescue during this training,” Shuman said.

Currently, Polk County has nine volunteer stations. Station 1 is located at Blooming Grove; Station 2 covers Antioch and Station 3 is at Vinson Mountain. Others include: Station 4, Aragon; Station 5, Prior Station; 6, Fish Creek; 7, Youngs Grove; 8, Esom Hill and 9, Lake Creek.