26th Milton Keynes Coniston Cub Scouts were super excited to visit The Blue Light Hub fire station on Tuesday 4 October 2022.
The session began with a very special moment as five young people made their promises in the investiture ceremony to join the Coniston Cub Scouts pack – warmest welcome to Freya, Arpit, Markel, Jonah and Gabriel.
Hands-on tour
It was a privilege for Coniston Cubs to receive a private tour of The Blue Light Hub (West Ashland) Fire Station. They had hands-on experience of tools and equipment from the compartments of the fire engine, which included holding and seeing up close a giant pair of mechanical scissors that is used to rescue people from trapped vehicles.
Coniston Cubs enjoyed exploring the inside of the fire engine, and many questions were asked as Cubs wanted to know everything and anything about the daily life of a firefighter, such as what firefighters ate, who cooked their meals, how many cats do they rescue from trees on a regular basis and more.
Cubs were amused to see boots and clothing all lined up outside of fire engines, ready for any emergency call. Young Leader Rikki Tikki Tavi got to try on the firefighter’s gear – albeit Akela missed the photo opportunity there!
The tour included the canteen where firefighters have cooked meals during their 15-hours shifts (Coniston Cubs were also interested to know what firefighters would have for dinner that evening at 9pm), the operational office, and the sleeping quarters – Cubs were expecting to see lots of cuddly toys… alas there were none!
Ladder, lights and water hose action
The session ended with a spectacular grand finale that Coniston Cubs and Leaders did not expect. With all lights a-blazing, firefighters demonstrated the mobility and height of the 32m turntable ladder from one of the fire engines. Everyone then had the chance to step onto the platform of the ladder and take a close-up look at the anemometer (wind speed measurer), equipment and buttons used to operate the ladder.
As if this was not exciting enough already… Coniston Cubs then took turns to hold and aim the powerful water hoses at a top window of the firefighter’s training building.
There were many squeals of delight, ‘oohs’ and ‘wow!’ from Coniston Cubs. They had an amazing time whilst also completing many of the criteria on their Fire Safety activity badge.
Akela just wanted to express a MASSIVE THANK YOU to the Red Watch crew at the Blue Light Hub, and the team who helped organise this tour, for the wonderful and memorable experience that Cubs will remember for a long time to come, and for the amazing work that firefighters do to keep everyone safe.
