The Firehouse Yak: Jake Ryks – Anatomy of a House Fire with Multiple Victims Rescued
Peter Matthews talks with Jake Ryks, a St. Paul, MN, firefighter who was just named Minnesota’s Firefighter of the Year, along with Mason Conlin, for their efforts to rescue seven people from an early morning house fire. Ryks credits ongoing training and the desire to know your job with the herculean rescue and medical treatment efforts by firefighters at the Jan. 3, 2024 house fire.
Ryks, who was working in another company that shift, takes you step-by-step through the response, arrival and rescue efforts by St. Paul firefighters and explains why continued training played a pivotal role in decision-making that morning.
He also talks about becoming a trainer on hazardous materials, his work with The Haz Mat Guys and his new podcast launch, Hazard Class, in which he talks with firefighters on a variety of topics.
Jake Ryks
Jake Ryks is a Firefighter/EMT/HazMat Specialist with the Saint Paul, MN, Fire Department. He is heavily involved in many forms of department training including engine, truck and squad company functions, advanced auto extrication and RIT. He serves as an assistant hazmat coordinator for the department and is a trustee for IAFF Local 21. Ryks was awarded the MN100 - Firefighter of the Year Award in 2024 for his efforts in rescuing three children from a house fire in January 2024. In his fire service career, he has been involved with paid-on-call, part-time and career departments. He has taught hazmat training for fire departments locally, regionally and on a national level. He worked for an environmental consulting company as an emergency response clean-up contractor and the training director, facilitating internal and external hazmat training to clients in various industries. In May 2024, Ryks left that position and began working for The HazMat Guys, where he manages their online learning platform and their social media accounts. Most recently, he launched his own podcast, HAZARD CLASS, where he interviews interesting people from in and around the world of emergency response to learn their stories and motivations and hopefully absorb some knowledge along the way too. He has interviewed guests ranging from fire service toxicologists to film directors to experts in various topics of firefighting in the show where he has adopted the mantra, "Ask Stupid Questions to Smart People" as a reminder that all questions are valid and important when they're asked earnestly to the right people, and no one should be afraid to look foolish on their educational journey.
Peter Matthews | Editor-in-Chief/Conference Director
Peter Matthews is the conference director and editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department.
