New Tower Aims to Enhance WA Firefighter's Training

Three local fire departments are working together to build a new training tower in Walla Walla.

The new drill tower — under construction near an existing drill tower on Cayuse Street near Washington Park — is being funded equally by the Walla Walla Fire Department, the College Place Fire Department and Walla Walla County Fire District 4.

All three departments will conduct training at the new tower.

Walla Walla Deputy Fire Chief John Knowles said the new tower will offer several advantages that the old tower, built in 1974, can no longer offer.

"We can't burn in (the old tower) anymore," Knowles said. "The new tower brings new training props to firefighters that we haven't had ever, really. And we'll be able to burn in it and have live fire training again, which we haven't been able to do for four or five years now."

He said built-in training props will provide training scenarios the old tower couldn't even when they were able to burn in it.

"This new tower really has the capability to train firefighters and rescuers from the ground up," Knowles said. "It's a very good tool in not only training new firefighters, but also keeping the old guys in the game as well."

Despite all this, the old tower isn't going anywhere. In fact, it will see new life in additional training scenarios.

"We are going to revitalize the old tower," he said. "We're going to set it up like an apartment building and use it for search and rescue training. It still has some useful life left in it. We're just going to transition it from a burn tower to a training tower for scenarios that don't have a fire."

Knowles said the whole project will cost about $900,000.

Foundation work on the new tower is underway. Knowles said all work on both towers is expected to be complete by the end of May.

The old tower has remained in service while the new tower is under construction.

Jeremy Burnham can be reached at [email protected] or 509-526-8321.

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