Burn tower for firefighter training pushed

Fire chiefs call it vital in an era when fewer fires occur, which limits opportunities to learn.

By LISA GREENE

© St. Petersburg Times,
published August 14, 2001

Tougher building codes, sprinkler systems and other safety measures mean Pinellas County firefighters have to put out fewer fires than they once did.

Most of the time, that's a good thing.

But it also means firefighters get less experience actually fighting fires.

"Sometimes firefighters don't see a fire every week," said Bill Naylor, public safety chief in South Pasadena. "Sometimes it's several weeks."

That's why fire chiefs from across Pinellas on Monday came to county commissioners to support the county's plan to build a $2.4-million burn tower -- a computer-controlled, fire-resistant building that fire trainers could burn over and over again.

Fire agencies now must send rookies to Ocala to get such training. And firefighters already on the job rarely get refresher training.

Pinellas firefighters once were able to burn abandoned houses but no longer do so because of environmental and safety issues, said Jay Stout, fire chief in Safety Harbor.

"This allows them to train ahead of the battle," Stout said.

Stout, Naylor and Charles Fant, Treasure Island fire chief, said that even though fires are rarer now, homes are bigger; and when fires do spread, it's because safety measures have failed and the fire has gone undetected.

"When they do start, they can be bigger," Fant said.

The chiefs couldn't name a specific case in which a firefighter or victim has been injured, or a building has been lost because of poor training. But 20 county fire agencies support the plan because they want to be prepared before that happens, Naylor said.

"This is like insurance," Naylor said. "You'd like them to be ready for the worst-case scenarios."

The county would build the tower on county-owned land on 126th Avenue, a block west of 49th Street. The county's Penny for Pinellas sales tax would pay for the project, which has been in the works for about five years.

Construction would begin in September 2002. Commissioners have yet to give final approval but told staff members Monday to continue working on the plan.

The tower would be four to six stories high and would have different rooms so firefighters could practice everything from kitchen fires to rescuing a child trapped in a smoky bedroom. Natural gas lines would start fires quickly but also would allow fires to be stopped quickly if dangers arose.

The fire chiefs said the fires won't present smoke problems for neighbors. In fact, they said, the gas fires produce so little smoke that artificial smoke will be pumped into the tower.

The site also would have a building for classrooms, offices and showers. Firefighters also want to build other training facilities there.

The county and the fire agencies are working on a plan for St. Petersburg College to lease the land and supervise the training. The county would pay the initial building cost, and other costs would be offset by training fees or contributions from other fire agencies, said Carl Barron, the county's general services director.

The college also could charge fire agencies outside the county or from industries to use the center, county and fire officials said.

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