For Tony Matthews, Whidbey Island Naval Air Station’s fire school is about feeling safe and prepared on an aircraft carrier.

Matthews, an enlisted command career counselor, said she has taken the course several times before in other locations, but at a NAS Whidbey’s fire school training in September she learned a few new things that will help keep her prepared.

Matthews said the training makes her feel safer to be on the Navy’s ships.

“I’ve been on ships most of my career,” Matthews said. “You need to learn these things because you never know what’s going to happen.”

Navy personnel are taught how to work as a team to operate high-powered hoses that combat external fires on the flight deck.

Fires can occur both on aircraft or on other types of equipment on the carrier.

During training, teams on each side of the aircraft push the stream of water from the front of the aircraft to the back, forcing the flames to the back of the aircraft.

NAS Whidbey’s fire school was a response to the 1967 tragedy on the USS Forrestal when a fire and series of explosions killed 134 sailors and injured 161 on the aircraft carrier.

Sen. John McCain was among the survivors.

After the USS Forrestal tragedy, the Navy implemented mandatory training for every person on the flight deck.

“As a result of that, the Navy said, ‘No more,’” said the base’s Public Affairs Assistant Tony Popp.

The training is delivered through the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training.

NAS Whidbey’s facility includes an aircraft hull on which students can practice firefighting procedures and provides training for all branches of the military in the Northwest.

Anyone who works on the a flight deck or flight line takes the course, Popp said.

“Everyone … male, female, officer, enlisted … if you go on that carrier you get the training,” Popp said.

Each trainee is assigned one of several shirt colors that indicates his or her duties in the case of a ship fire, according to Lt. Paul Young.

For instance, red shirts indicate crash and salvage duties, green is assigned to aviation equipment recovery and purple is assigned fuel management.

Young said in his 15 years of active duty, he’s only seen one on-deck fire, but the training is still very important for that rare occasion it’s needed.

Lt. Jason Coates said he and all of Electronic Attack Squadron 137 were completing the training in preparation for deployment sometime next year.

“Before we go to the boat, we all go through the course,” Coates said. “I’ve never had to use it, thank God.

“It’s a high-risk environment on the boat and this helps balance out the risk.”