FORT SIMPSON - Most people will go their whole lives without contemplating how to get out of a helicopter hovering above the ground but for members of the local fire crews it's all part of a day's work.

Some 22 members of the four Nogha fire crews spent the afternoon of June 8 at the Environment and Natural Resources' heliport in Fort Simpson practising their helicopter exits.

Hover exit certification is part of the Type 1 fire crew training crewmembers receive every summer, said Kelly Pennycook, the regional fire technician.

The training is only valid for 12 months and must be repeated yearly.

"It's a number one priority every start up to make sure our crews are all trained to Type 1," said Pennycook.

This year the training was broken into three sections. Session one involves standard fire training and session three includes pump training and instructions on the fire crews' equipment. Session two is about helicopters and hover exits.

In a hover exit, a firefighter has to be able to safely exit the door of a helicopter that is hovering, a maximum of five feet off the ground and smoothly transfer their weight to the ground, said Pennycook.

Hover exits are usually done when there's no suitable landing spot for a helicopter so crew members have to get out and cut a helipad, he said.

Hover exits, however, aren't very common, said Daniel Allaire, a forest officer. In a busy season an average of less than 10 per cent of fires require a hover exit but all crew members still need to know how to do one.

This summer a hover exit was already necessary on the first fire of the year in order for members of Nogha 1 and 2 to fight a fire near Camsell Bend, caused by a lightning strike. A crew member had to do a hover exit to cut a pad for the helicopter to land on, said Allaire.

When exiting a hovering helicopter, it's important to keep a firm footing and look at what you are about to hold onto, said Pennycook. Pennycook did a demonstration for the crews before the helicopter took off for the real thing.

Hover exits are old hat for crew leaders like Conrad Cazon. He said he executed many exits while he was a crew member, but now, as the leader of Nogha 2, he tells other people when to do them.

You have to take your time when doing an exit because the noise and wind makes people excited, he said.

"The noise gets you pumped," said Cazon.

While hover exits might sound exciting they're not something you want to do for fun, said Cazon, because they can be dangerous.

Watching other crew members do their exits, Danita Dennis-Martineau was contemplating her first attempt. She has been training for two years and is an alternate for the crews.

She's also the only female crew member. The exit looked a lot easier than some of the crew members told her it would be, she said.

"I think I can do it. I thought it would be higher," she added.