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Would this be used year-round or seasonally?
"Initially, it will be set up for spring to fall; however, as we progress, we will open more options to train in year-round," Graham said.
In a news release, he said that "as the Chief of the City of Batavia Fire Department, I have analyzed our costs and training practices along with command staff and have determined that the City can conduct more training at a lower cost by having training space located within the City.
"Currently, the City of Batavia Fire Department conducts six training events annually at the Genesee County Fire Training Center, located outside the City of Batavia," he said. "When conducting training, off-duty personnel report to the training center on their scheduled days off, while our first-due engine (first responding vehicle) and ladder truck and crew must remain in the City.
"City Fire's primary responsibility is to ensure the safety of the City of Batavia, and therefore, we must have an on-duty shift present to guarantee a swift and effective response. Consequently, the city incurs overtime costs to accommodate training on these six occasions. Additionally, due to family obligations and other concerns, personnel are not always able to attend training during their time off, which can lead to additional strain on our members and cost to the City," he said. "The new training center will not be a live-fire training area, meaning no actual fires will be burned at the location. Modern technology allows us to use smoke machines that simulate low-visibility conditions encountered by our firefighters.
"This simulated smoke is non-toxic and dissipates quickly once it exits the structure. We will also use the facility for vehicle extrication training, employing vehicles that have been drained of all fluids, with batteries and hydraulic pistons removed. This ensures that there are no environmental hazards.
"The City does not use firefighting foam containing Perfluoroctane Sulfonate (PFOS). The state restricts its use to extreme life-or-death situations, and the associated costs make its use impractical for training. Instead, alternatives such as dish soap will be used when necessary."
Is maintenance of the grounds/containers required, and if so, how much do you expect?
"This will be extremely low maintenance with general clean up around the grounds," he said.
How many times do you expect to have personnel out there in training mode, in addition to the six times at the other county training site?
"Again, this is just the start, as we add to it and create ways to train on different disciplines, we will be out there more frequently," he said.
Have you calculated the cost savings in overtime?
"I do not have a hard number. We open the annual training at the FTC to all off-duty members on these dates. Any given time, we have 27 firefighters off duty, so there could be anywhere from a handful to in the 20s," he said. "Each training session is generally around four hours. Additionally, we occasionally have to send members out of the area for more specific training that we cannot facilitate currently."
The fire department is on City Council's agenda for the next budget discussion set for 5 p.m. Monday Tuesday at City Hall.
Photos submitted by Batavia City Fire Department
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