NY Fire Department to Gain Mobile Burn Simulator
A new training unit will be purchased with a FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant.
A FEMA grant will allow the city of Dunkirk, N.Y., to receive a mobile burn unit so it and 42 other departments in Chautauqua County can conduct live-fire training. This comes from an Assistance to Firefighters Grant that totals $400,000 when a $40,000 local match is included.
"This simulator adds a safe, live-burn dimension to our training capacity," said Lt. James Hyland, the Dunkirk Fire Department's deputy chief. "Our training building had become so deteriorated that it had to be torn down several years ago. Now, among a host of other training options, we can simulate the work of our rapid intervention teams, for example, which stand by to rescue firefighters who may become trapped or overcome while on the job."
The equipment will enable firefighters to practice ventilation training to clear smoke and noxious elements, a critical capability during a fire.
Lt. Matthew Hanlon of the department said the mobile burn simulator is a "huge asset not only to Dunkirk's firefighting capabilities, but also to Chautauqua County's other fire departments and roughly 134,000 residents. The unit can be easily transported, and we're grateful to the county's Department of Public Works, which has agreed to move the new equipment to county fire departments, allowing them to augment their capabilities, as well."