From Flooded To Firefighter Training Grounds

By Rachel Abell

EL PASO — Neighborhoods that were ravaged by the floods of Storm 2006 have been given a second chance at utility for training emergency personnel for new and dangerous situations.

Few can forget the images of mud caked and mold infested homes with crumbling walls made uninhabitable after the rains of August 2006 in El Paso.

Many of the homes in the Saipan area in Central El Paso were condemned and residents moved away when the city took them over. Now, they are being used to train probationary firefighters to handle difficult situations.

Drills focus on search and rescue operations, ventilation techniques during a fire and many other important skills for recent graduates of the fire academy to hone and practice.

Officials with the fire department said the live training mock ups are an invaluable resource for developing new firefighters’ skills.

“It’s a lot better. It’s a more realisticscenario for the firefighters. This program has just started and hopefully it will get better, we’re going to work on it,” saidCaptain Sergio Ramirez of the EPFD.

Ramirez emphasized that the training areas are specifically for the probationary officers, but the veteran officers also appreciate the practice as well.