Four Cherokee Fire Fighters Place 1st in Ironman Challenge

Four fire fighters with Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services placed first in the second annual Ironman Challenge that was held this past Friday evening at Cumberland Mall, just north of Atlanta.  

The Ironman Challenge is done in partnership with the Metro Atlanta Fire Officers Association and showcases the expertise and physical abilities of metro Atlanta firefighters in a head-to-head-skills competition. 

"The course was 7 stations with a four man team," said Cherokee County fire fighter Kevin Hamilton. "The first station was a quick dress, you had to pull a 220 pound tire, with 50 feet of a 3 inch hose line attached, down 75 feet and back.  The next challenges included advancing a 1-3/4 inch charged hose though serpentine, a forcible entry exercise, go through a 2 foot by 2 foot by 8 foot tube, over an A frame and then breach a wall before heading to the finish line with all tools, team members and nozzle. All team members had to finish each station completely before you could move to the next." 

The event was a head to head heat with the two fastest times racing each other in the finals for first place. A Cobb County team had an original time of 6:15 and Cherokee County placed second with a time of 7:09. When the final heat was held, Cherokee County firefighters beat Cobb County by 1 second with a time of 6:58. 

Besides Hamilton, the other members of the Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services team were Jonathan Gottfried, Alex Adams and Frank Madonna.  The team will be receiving a trophy and a couple sets of Paratech Irons.