The Seattle Fire Department (SFD) will train current firefighters and new firefighter recruits at a vacant apartment building in the Queen Anne neighborhood on Oct. 22-30 at 610 2nd Ave. W. This is the first time in the history of the Acquired Structure Program that the department will conduct this training in an apartment structure scheduled for demolition; this training is usually conducted in donated residential homes.
Live-fire training is an opportunity for our new fire recruits and firefighters to face real fire scenarios in a controlled setting, and the apartment building setting adds enhanced complexity. This experience is vital to the development of new recruits as these fires act as a final evaluation of what they have learned over the past 13 weeks of training and focus on fire attack, teamwork and communication.
SFD conducts this training exercise twice a year in the City and make every effort to minimize the impact on the neighborhood. A portion of northbound lanes of 2nd Ave. W. will be closed to ensure the safety of the community as well as the firefighters in training. Water in the immediate area may turn brown due to sediment in the pipes. The water is likely to clear on its own within 2-8 hours.
SFD recognizes that this training exercise may present inconveniences to your daily schedules and thanks those in the immediate vicinity for their patience and understanding. Seattle firefighters are among the best in the nation because of the training provided and support received from the community.
On each day, the department will have 4-5 fire evolutions spread throughout the day each lasting 15-20 minutes. Residents will see smoke as controlled burns are set inside the vacant apartment structure. All carpet, plastics and toxic synthetic materials have been removed along with required asbestos abatement. The training officers will set wood fires in a controlled method with safety officers on-hand during the exercises. This training is conducted under the strict regulations and rules of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. The smoke coming from the buildings during the live-fire is equivalent to smoke from a fireplace. After the fires are out, most of what you see coming from the structure is steam.
Neighbors are welcome to come and watch the live-fire training. Typical training days begin around 7 a.m. with the live-fire evolutions starting at 9 a.m. and lasting until around 3 p.m. with a break from 12-12:30 p.m. Any questions can be directed to SFD’s public information officer at sfdpio@seattle.gov.