BY BEN PIPER • APRIL 6, 2009
PETAL - As the room filled with smoke, firefighters launched into search-and-rescue mode. They maneuvered their way through the smoke, looking for a potential survivor.
Thankfully, it was a just a drill.
And the new Petal fire training facility - finished two weeks ago - will give firefighters more training like this.
Officials also hope the facility will help lower the city's fire classification ratings. Lower ratings translate into cheaper insurance premiums for Petal homeowners and businesses.
Petal lowered its classification rating two years ago from a Class 7 to a Class 6, said Shane Pickett, Petal assistant fire chief. Mayor Carl Scott said his goal is to finish his four-year term with a Class 5 rating.
"You owe it to the citizens to get the lowest possible rating because of the future insurance savings," he said.
Savings for improving the city's fire rating would be financially minimal, said Donna Cromeans, spokeswoman for the Mississippi Insurance Department.
Frame homes would see a $10 decrease on insurance premiums for a $100,000 home. Masonry homes would see an $8 decrease on premiums for a similar-priced home.
"The other value that can't be measured is saving property and lives in the future," Cromeans said. "This is one reason we are great advocates of communities lowering their fire rates to improve community safety."
The fire training facility cost $55,000, with funding coming from a $5 million general obligation bond passed early in this administration's term.
Pickett said he has been petitioning the city for six years for a training facility. He said funding was always the issue when he was turned down.
The fire training facility - a 2,000-square-foot, four-story gray metal structure clad with red staircases - towers above a relatively vacant area just inside the city limits.
Mississippi State Rating Bureau sets the fire classification standards for municipalities. Scott said lowering the fire class rating further would mean the city would have to increase the availability of water for the city.
He said other water associations such as Barrontown Water serve customers in East Petal. But he said without cooperation from other water associations, the fire rating might not lower any further.
Landon Fordham has fought fires for four years with the Petal Fire Department. He said Wednesday after a brief training session that the building is what the department needs.
"It's a real asset to the department, you can do just about anything here... from search and rescue to repelling down the side, all in one facility," he said.
Alderman Steve Stringer worked with the Petal Fire Department in the 1980s. He said his experiences caused him to vote in favor of spending the money for the facility even if the fire rating did not change.
"One of the main issues is staying consistently trained, and you have to be in pretty good shape to work under those kinds of conditions," he said.
Scott himself even suited up once for the Petal Fire Department to see what the facility was like.
"I didn't realize how hot it is when you are in gear, plus carrying the equipment and battling claustrophobia in the mask, and you're taxed with all of that before you even go into a life-saving situation," he said. "It really takes a special person to do that job."
Pickett said the building located just off U.S. 11 will serve as a valuable training resource for the city's 26 firefighters.
"Before this was built, if someone had an abandoned house, we'd call and ask if we could use it, but you have to worry about what you're breaking, so it's not ideal for training," he said.Scott already is looking at the advantages the facility will bring to the city.