BEDFORD COUNTY, Va. – Dragging a heavy bag across the floor to simulate dragging a person to safety is just one of many exercises Bedford County firefighters can now do from the comfort of one of the county fire and rescue stations.
"We're right next door to the Bedford Fire Department, so we collaborated and came up with a plan," Bedford County Fire and Rescue Operations Deputy Chief Abbey Johnston said.
Johnston said the gym will give firefighters an important, convenient option to improve both their physical and mental health.
"Data's showed us for years that the top three leading causes of firefighter deaths are cardiac disease, cancer and firefighter suicide. So we know that if we can get people in shape and feeling good about themselves, it also improves their mental health," Johnston said.
"People, I think, are getting pretty excited. Some of them have been sharing information about it on Facebook."
Bedford firefighters used a grant from 555 Fitness and their own money to purchase the equipment.
Bedford County Fire and Rescue Hazmat Division Chief John Moore led the effort to build the gym.
"I started from scratch. I reframed, new construction, all the walls that are in here that you actually see. We hung the Sheetrock, painted. Then we put the rubberized floor down," Moore explained.
He enjoyed every minute of the work.
"Coming in here and working out and having the camaraderie between the fire department guys and the medic unit men and women upstairs, it just makes the whole brotherhood, sisterhood, and the whole fellowship a whole lot better," Moore said.
He now hopes other first responder agencies will hear about the gym and build one of their own, potentially saving even more lives.