A NEW facility which provides realistic scenarios where Warwickshire’s firefighters can practice their skills has opened.
The centre, which was built on land formerly used as a highways depot in Rugby, has cost about £3 million and includes the ability for firefighters to carry out ‘hot fire training’.
The state-of-the-art facility is made up of a series of structures which mimic different types of buildings. They can be repeatedly set on fire in a controlled environment. It also includes a state-of-the-art filtration and scrubbing system to remove smoke and capture harmful contaminates, which can then be disposed of safely.
The county council said the centre is a zero emissions facility and is the first of its kind in the county, with firefighters previously travelling to neighbouring counties to train.
With the centre being based within Warwickshire, firefighters on training would still be available to attend to a large-scale emergency if required as the facility also has the capability to dispatch a fire engine.
Cllr Andy Crump, portfolio holder for fire and rescue and community safety at WCC, said: “The opening of our new training facility is a great achievement for the fire service. This state-of-the-art facility will help to upskill our people in their roles protecting the communities of Warwickshire and, importantly, has measures in place to protect their health while doing so.
“The new facility means that our firefighters can train in-county which benefits both our firefighters and our communities who will have higher levels of protection closer to home”.
Alongside a fire house, there are changing rooms, showers, toilets, storage, offices, meeting rooms and a kitchenette.
The new training facility in Rugby.
The scheme has not been without its delays. In September 2023, a WCC report said the unit was due to be “sited and fully operational by February 2024” at a cost of just shy of £2.5m.
By December of that year, that date had moved out to April 2024 with costs jumping to £3m.
The £3m figure was double of the original budget, but money will be saved over the years by not having to hire facilities in other counties.
Mark Ryder, Executive Director for Communities, Ben Brook, Chief Fire Officer at Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service and Cllr Andy Crump, Portfolio Holder for Fire and Rescue and Community Safety.