I don't know of they have enough firemen big enough to lug my butt down the stairs, but it would be interesting to see them attempt it.

Grand Rapids Fire Department Will Be Training For High Rise Fires

The department needs to be prepared for handling fires in some of Grand Rapids taller structures, so on June 25, the GRFD will conduct exercises at the current nine story Grand Rapids City Hall on Calder Plaza.

The Department is seeking volunteers to be 'victims' during the exercises, and you could be one of them.

A make up artist will make your injuries more real to the firefighters, who will have to make decisions on who to transport first out of the 'burning building'

“Impalements, bruising, blood. And then we give them a victim card that tells them a little bit more about their injury and then they can act it out of they feel comfortable doing that,” Grand Rapids Emergency Management Director Allison Farole told WOOD-TV 8.

The exercises will help train not only City Firefighters, but firefighters from departments throughout the metro area will be participating.

If You Can Act A Little Bit, That Will Help

If you're a local actor, and want to work on our skills about portraying an injured person, Farole says this is your chance.

“One of these volunteers may be a person that has been knocked out, unconscious and is not able to exit the building and need to be actually rescued,” she told WOOD.

I was a part of a mock disaster when I was in eighth grade. They were training medical personnel on how to handle an explosion at a school. I had a chest wound and began moaning really loud. I'm pretty sure the doctor put me in the "dead" area of triage just to shut me up. So I guess my warning is don't try and overact.

Here's A Quick Quiz: How Many Buildings Are Over 13 Stories In Grand Rapids?

The answer is at the bottom of the page. But start counting them off in your head now. This answer surprised me.

If you live or work in a high rise, here are some things you should learn to help you out incase of an emergency.

It's Never A Bad Idea To Learn How To Escape Your Building

Farole says learn where your exits are, and know where the one closest to your desk or room is, and how to access it quickly.

Learn and know the evacuation maps for your building, and travel the exit course every once in a while to understand where some problems may arise with bottlenecks.

And, of course, never use the elevator in the event of a fire.

“We call it a chimney in a high rise. Because it’s an open shaft that goes all the way from the grounds floor to the roof,” Grand Rapids Fire Department Deputy Chief Jack Johnson told WOOD-TV.

So how many buildings above 13 stories are in downtown Grand Rapids?

There are 14 buildings with 13 or more stories.

Here is a list of the tallest Grand Rapids buildings by number of stories:

Plaza Tower 34

River House 33

Amway Grand Plaza Hotel 28

J.W. Marriot Hotel 23

Bridgewater Place 18

McKay Tower 16

601 Bond Street 16

Warner Building 15

Gallery On Fulton (former UICA building) 14

77 Monroe Center 13

First Community Bank Building 13

Residence Inn Downtown 13

Morton House 13

Kent County Courthouse 13

The Michigan Zip Codes With The Most Expensive Homes

Unique Michigan "Smurf House" on Market for $4.19 Million

A unique storybook-style home with a stunning blue roof is for sale in West Bloomfield for $4.19 Million. In addition to the interestingly-colored roof, you find the levels, seven bedrooms, 5 full and 3 half baths, nine fireplaces, and 175 feet of frontage on Pine Lake.

 

 

 

 

 

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