This browser does not support the Video element.
A peak inside Detroit firefighter training at Coleman A. Young International airport
The training is called a live burn, which is meant to get enough firefighters trained to work the Engine at Detroit's airport after it reopened post COVID.
DETROIT (FOX 2) - They are ready around the clock to save lives and memories when a fire threatens to take both, and now the Detroit Fire Department is attempting to staff the firehouse at the Coleman A. Young International airport full-time.
On Friday, Detroit firefighters trained at the city airport with the goal of staffing a full-time fire crew there. Firefighters started, then battled a live fire on a model fuselage, preparing for any potential aircraft rescues.
FOX 2 had the chance to get a peak on the training process.
"This is one of my projects that I really want to take off, to train our men and women in the Detroit Fire Department," said department executive commissioner Chuck Simms. "The goal is to have enough members on the job to staff the firehouse over here."
The training is called a live burn, which is meant to get enough firefighters trained to work the Engine at Detroit's airport. The Engine was closed in 2008, but was renovated during the COVID-19 Pandemic. It has since reopened but is not staffed. Leadership at the fire department are trying to change that.
"Most cities and municipalities, they won’t have this type of training," said Simms. "We’re hoping that we can train even those outside agencies and fire departments as well."
Putting an airplane fire out is trickier than you might think. Diesel fuel can burn a lot hotter and faster than regular gas and other combustible materials.
The 40-hour course is getting fire crews up to speed and ready for whatever may come.