Former county building used by firefighters

EPHRATA — When the firefighters looked through their hand-held, thermal image cameras, the flames were colored white — indicating high temperatures.

As smoke poured from the roof and broken windows, the four-member rapid intervention team stood just outside the building, ready the moment a firefighter was trapped inside, possibly hurt.

Firefighters entered the building again and again Saturday, pinpointing the flames, attacking them and using their skills to extinguish the blaze. It was training day.

The Ephrata Fire Department conducted a live fire training exercise at the former offices of the Grant County Building Department and Fire Marshal, located at 332 W. Division in Ephrata.

When structural weakening made the building unsafe to enter, it was allowed to burn to the ground. The site is to be cleared for future construction of a new county building.

Several Grant County fire districts participated in the live fire training exercise.

"Opportunities like this don't come often," said Kyle Foreman, Ephrata Battalion Chief. "So when we do get a chance like this we ask others to participate."

Foreman said both safety and teamwork were of primary emphasis during the exercise.

Firefighters typically use training towers, constructed mostly of cinder blocks, to simulate a burning building. When they're able to train on a structure made of common building materials, it's invaluable, Foreman said.

On Saturday, the building and fire were real. The danger was also real.

"It gives us real life viewing of how a building burns," he said. "It's a chance to fight fire under real conditions."

It's important to see fire activity firsthand, Foreman said, how it moves up the wall and curls at the ceiling.

"It's just something you can't replicate in a burn tower," Foreman said.

The building, which sits across the street from the Grant County courthouse, was cleared of hazardous materials. Tree branches and wood pallets were placed inside the building to help ignite the rooms.

Blazes were repeatedly set inside one of the building's seven rooms and fire crews took turns knocking them down with water.

Foreman, as incident commander, was responsible for resource management, getting the people and tools in place to effectively and safely battle the blazes.

Firefighting is as much science, he said, as it is guts.

"You can make the wrong decision about how to put the fire out and you can hurt yourself," Foreman said.