The training facility will be built on approximately 10 acres of land purchased by the District in 2002 for the purpose of building a multipurpose training center.  The property is located at Mid Rivers Mall Drive and Ecology Drive in St. Peters.

A multi-year, multi phase plan has been developed by the District for construction of the training center.  The first phase of the plan will include a five story building.  It is build specifically to train firefighters in live fire evolutions in a controlled environment.  The building has been designed in order to replicate firefighting in commercial and residential structures.

This facility will feature the first permanent live fire training facility in St. Charles County.  In the past the District has used old buildings just before they were going to be torn down.  Our concern here was the stability of the building affecting firefighter safety.  Environmental laws have become so restrictive it's difficult to attain the approval to burn an existing structure.  Firefighters have also traveled to other cities in order to experience live fire training.

The district is very proud and very fortunate to have the opportunity to put together a permanent training facility that will better prepare its firefighters to provide an even higher level of service to the homeowners and businesses protected by Central County Fire & Rescue.

In addition to live fire training, the building will feature a ventilation prop with replaceable panels to simulate ventilation in the roof of a building.  Firefighters will chop and cut holes in the special built prop to practice proper ventilation techniques.  Phase I will also feature a separate flashover simulator that will assist firefighters in understanding the dynamics of a flashover.  Instructors will recreate a flashover which is what happens when fire gases and heat rise to a level where all the contents in a room simultaneously ignite, producing an atmosphere where firefighters cannot survive.  It is very important for firefighters to see this in a controlled but live fire situation so that they understand the instantaneous change that can occur during a fire.

The last item planned for this phase of the project is a covered pavilion for protection from inclement weather and summer heat.  It will also double as an outdoor classroom.

Future plans call for an area to train for hazardous materials incidents, a pump operator's area for testing pumps and a driver operator area.  The site will also feature an area to reproduce natural and propane gas fires utilizing various props.

Included in the design is an area for vehicle extrication where wrecked cars, trucks, and buses can be brought in to get hands on opportunities for the firefighters to cut up and practice extrication techniques on vehicles.

A four story technical rescue building has been programmed into the facility for high angle/low angle rope training.  An SCBA maze used to build firefighter confidence in tight, dark spaces while learning to control their breathing.  The exercises assist the firefighters in the ability to stretch and conserve their air supply.  The maze can also be used for practicing search and rescue techniques in a collapsed building or locating and removing a downed victim or firefighter.

Trap doors in the floor will allow firefighters to move victims from one level to another, using specialized hauling equipment.

There are sliding doors to open one room into another to make larger areas available to simulate an office building for practicing search and rescue techniques.  The building will feature several easily moved partitions to change the inside configuration.  An elevator shaft will allow firefighters to perform rope rescues and confined space training.

The final phase of the project will include indoor classrooms and offices for instructors.  until funding is available for this building, classrooms at local fire stations and other area locations will be used.  After the indoor sessions are completed, instructors will then move the hands on training to the training site.

The time line for the facility has construction for Phase I in the summer of 2008.