Public Safety Training Academy – Outdoor Training Areas

The outdoor training areas at the PSTA facility include spaces for multiple agencies to train simultaneously. There are dedicated areas for Live Fire Training, Urban Search and Rescue training (USAR), and driver training. The live fire training area is adjacent to the live fire burn buildings, the Apparatus Bay Building, and the High Bay Building, allowing training scenarios that may use one or all of those areas simultaneously. The fire training area includes a mobile burn prop that allows the source of the flame to be moved from the car prop to the petroleum tank prop to the power line prop. This area also includes an old train car on train tracks, as well as an old Metro car on tracks to allow for a variety of scenarios that may be encountered by Fire Personnel.

The USAR area was designed to allow for a changing configuration of large concrete pipes to simulate the rumble that the search and rescue team may encounter during a disaster. This area is used by both human and canine search and rescue teams.

The outdoor driver training areas include a driving track, a skills pad, and a skid pan. These areas are accessible to police and fire trainees as well as Department of Transportation trainees. The skills pad allows precision training for drivers to practice maneuvers that may be required in the field. The skid pan allows training on what to do if a vehicle begins to skid due to weather or other slippery conditions.