Al6 - Sunday, April 1, 1984 - North Shore News

TRAINING SITE |
Unique centre

for firefighters

FIREFIGHTERS IN

the District

of North

Vancouver have opened a unique facility — a
Training and Maintenance Centre that officially

opened a week ago.

By LOUISE TUR

Before the Centre was
constructed, all training was
carried out at the District’s
fire halls, a process which
had become increasingly
cumbersome with the arrival
of new equipment and
procedure. The answer was
the new facility, the only one
of its kind in B.C.

The North Van District
Fire Department acquired
the 2.5 acre site in November
of 1980, and construction of
Phase 1, the Training
Centre, began after the
contract was awarded in
May, 1982, reaching a final
cost of $850,000.

Among the structures used
for practical traiming are a
fire simulation burn
building, a pumping test pit,
a tanker car and track and
the familiar fire hall tower.

The two-storey burn
building has been designed
to simulate any type of
structure that a firefighter
would encounter. Balconies,
three styles of roofing, three

. types of windows and doors

opening both outwards and
inwards have been included
for realism.

Made of brick, the unit

can withstand the low heat
from the fires ignited inside
for drill work.The | interior
can be outfitted to resemble
any room, right down to a
ship, thereby providing a
number of practical test
situations. Even a theatrical
type of smoke is on hand to
simulate a real fire.

The six-storey tower, at-
tached to the main building,
enables the firefighters to
hone net skills and practice
rope, drills necessary for
cany' rescues. The tower
also mimics the fire escapes
and stairwells found in
highrises, complete with
firefighter’s phones and
hoses, and therefore doubles
as a teaching aid.

Inside the main building
are the maintenance area,
storage and drying rooms,
offices, kitchen facilities, a
future library and a
classroom.

Construction on the
maintenance area, Phase I],
began in January, 1983, and
had a final price tag of
$495,000. It has capabilities
to handle any vehicie from a
compact car to the fire
engines. In the centre of the
room, a crane lifts parts —
engines and equipment —

eut of the trucks for repair.
Tor facilitate repairs
underneath vehicles too
heavy for the resident
hydraulic lift, the mechanic
uses a rectangular pit, well
lit and ventilated, over which
the truck is positioned.

In addition, equipment
from any of the District’s
fire halls is also brought here
for maintenance and special
tools are manufactured on
the premises in the welding
and fabrication shop.

Rooms immediately off
the maintenance area house
such materials as flammable
liquids, compression
equipment and, on the se-
cond floor, a storage area
and breathing apparatus
room, the latter having it’s
own supply of air and water
to ensure hygenic conditions.
Two types of sprinkler alarm
systems are also nearby, one
being of a sophisticated,
industrial design.

The classroom at the far
end of the building currently
has space for classes of up to
28.

In a drive that began
Jan.1 and was completed at
the end of March, every
firefighter in the District has
had three training sessions at
the Training and
Maintenance Centre.

Beginning April 2, 10
firefighters will begin a
10-day, 70-hour Officer
Development Course.

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NEWS Stuart Davie

ad ‘ .
View from the top
NORTH VANCOUVER District’s fire captain drill master Ron Kean poses on the top of
smoke tower. Below, on right of photo, is one of the training houses.

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