"This will benefit a whole lot of people. We are lucky to have a training center in our backyard, but with this mobile unit the entire state will be able to train," Morgantown Fire Chief David Fetty said.

The $450,000 mobile unit will travel across the state until the weather gets too cold, in October or November. That's when water -- through condensation -- can get into the unit's components and freeze, said Murrey Loflin, director of the Fire Extension Service program.

"Until then, we'll be traveling everywhere in the state -- north, south, east and west. We're booked up for almost every weekend," Loflin said.

The unit was built by Kidde Fire Protection. Loflin said the purchase was financed by state money for economic development, the university and the West Virginia State Fire Academy, located at Jackson's Mill.

The unit is used to develop basic firefighting skills, such as forcible entry through doors and windows, roof ventilation and other ventilation techniques, search and rescue, hose-line operations and basic firefighting operations.

When firefighters enter the unit, they are faced with roomfuls of smoke and flames, as well as simulated sound, such as a man yelling for help or a baby crying. Holes in the floor allow for temporary walls to be erected that the firefighters must navigate around.

"We try to make everything reflect a real rescue situation," Fetty said.

While the unit is built to challenge firefighters, it is also designed to make sure they're safe. Sessions are led by Fire Service Extension instructors. There is an observation room that allows the lead instructor to operate the system by a cordless handheld control or a tethered one. The flames are fueled by propane.

Two emergency stops can completely shut down the operations and ventilate the interior within 45 to 60 seconds. Sensors in the unit automatically shut down operations if the interior becomes too hot.

"It's tough to get live burning training. This way we are able to train more people," said Steve Bonanno, director of the university's Community, Economic and Workforce Development program -- the parent program of the Fire Extension Service.

"Before, people have had to use abandoned houses and set the fire with straw. ... The thing about straw is that once you douse it, it's hard to reignite. Propane doesn't care. It will burn all day."

The unit is also environmentally sound, according to the Fire Extension Service. The propane is clean-burning and the smoke is nontoxic.

It is available for training of volunteer and paid firefighters, as well as for military and industrial use.

"This is a great thing," Loflin said. "It helps everybody, because we're able to let local departments use their own equipment, which will ultimately make them more prepared."

Written by Dominion Post