Local Junior Firefighters Attend BSA Winterfest Competition

Press release from Cherokee County Fire & Emergency Services:

Feb. 6, 2023

Explorer Post 469, a junior firefighter program of Cherokee County Fire & Emergency Services for high school students, traveled to Gatlinburg, TN for the annual BSA Winterfest Competition.

The Explorer Post departed Thursday, Jan. 26 for the 48th annual BSA Winterfest competition located in Gatlinburg, TN. The event took place Jan 27 and 28 at Rocky Top Sports World and the Gatlinburg Fire Training Center. Over one-thousand explorers and venturers from across the country attended the event this year which was the first gathering since 2020.

Explorer Post 469 placed 3rd in the Bleeding Wounds & Shock event and competed well in other events against nearly 30 other fire and EMS teams that participated. These events involved the explorers performing interior search, removal of victims, hose deployment, emergency medical treatment, and much more.

Our explorers began training for this year’s Winterfest in December 2022. They averaged ten hours of training per week and were mentored by career and volunteer firefighters from CCFES.

Fire & Emergency Services Exploring is a hands-on program that exposes participants to many career experiences, leadership opportunities, and community service activities. The primary goals of the program are to help young adults choose a career path within fire and emergency services and to challenge them to become responsible citizens of their communities and country.

For more information about Explorer Post 469 you can contact JoinCherokeeFire.com.

This press release was produced by Cherokee County Fire & Emergency Services. The views expressed here are the author's own.