Wednesday, March 27, 2002
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Wednesday, March 27, 2002 |
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Smoke, burn building start to PTC training center By JOHN
MUNFORD
In the coming years, Peachtree City will piece together a fire training center so it won't have to send firefighters away to state facilities at Forsyth to practice firefighting and rescue techniques. The first piece of the puzzle will be a smoke and burn building that will allow career and volunteer firefighters to train as a team, Fire Chief Stony Lohr told the City Council at its annual retreat Friday. That way, firefighters will have a place "where we can get used to going in on smoke and fire," Lohr said. "This structure is a much needed facility," Lohr said, explaining that the department currently uses Fayette County's smoke and burn building but preparations, travel time and breaking the equipment down cuts into the actual amount of training time. "Getting everybody together to work as a team is a sincere challenge," Lohr said. The training center will be located on property adjacent to the new Leach Fire Station near the intersection of Ga. Highway 74 and Paschall Road. The smoke and burn building, which is slated to be complete in August or September, will only be the start of the training center, Lohr said. Other components planned for the future include a training tower to practice high-rise rescues, a maze for firefighters to practice using breathing apparatus in a smoky environment, and a confined space structure to practice rescues in cramped quarters. The training facility will also include a paved pad to practice vehicle extrications and a device to test water pumps on fire engines, which is currently done in Clayton County. Lohr said the idea is to train the city's firefighters to national standards. The chief was open to allowing other agencies to train at the new facilities, but only after the city's needs were met first.
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