Grant to provide virtual training, connectivity for area fire departments

The Vestavia Hills Fire Department soon will be able to connect virtually with the Alabama Fire College and other area departments after a grant was awarded to several area fire departments.

A federal regional assistance grant was recently was awarded to the Mountain Brook and Vestavia Hills fire departments and Rocky Ridge, North Shelby and Cahaba Valley fire districts.

Vestavia Hills Fire Chief Marvin Green said Vestavia’s portion of the grant, $121,000, will pay for equipment to help the department conduct virtual training with Alabama Fire College as well as other departments, including the ability to livestream training at their own site to nearby departments. Vestavia received the largest portion of the grant.

Green said the fire college is expanding its virtual classes, which now include courses for emergency medical technicians, paramedics, fire instructors and fire officers.

Grant Wilkinson, public information officer for the Cahaba Valley Fire District, said while some required training courses at the college must be done in person because they are more hands-on activities, there are many classes that are more classroom-oriented. About half of the standard classes firefighters take can be done virtually, Wilkinson said.

Mountain Brook Fire Chief Chris Mullins said the change helps streamline training for area departments.

“We found we were reinventing the wheel,” Mullins said. “Everyone was doing their own thing.”

Mountain Brook received $98,000 from the grant, while Rocky Ridge received $83,000, and both North Shelby and Cahaba Valley received $54,000.

Rocky Ridge Fire Chief Jon Lord said the equipment, due to be delivered by mid-August, includes cameras, speaker systems, computers, smart TVs and more. It helps save on wear and tear on fire department equipment and helps keep firefighters physically separate while bringing them together virtually, a much-needed blessing in the time of COVID-19.

“Anytime we get to work with neighboring departments, it helps us get to know each other more,” Wilkinson said.

Wilkinson said because the departments often help each other during emergencies, it helps to get to know other firefighters. For example, Cahaba Valley has gotten to know firefighters in Liberty Park, Vestavia’s No. 4 station located on the back side of Liberty Park, he said. This equipment will help the fire district get to know the rest of the city’s stations, as well as firefighters in other cities.

Green said during the pandemic, his department has focused on more online training but has kept up with all of its required types of training.

Department leaders can use the technology for morning meetings, and because the equipment will be installed at each station, firefighters no longer have to leave their stations while on duty. In the past, that would mean someone else would have to replace them.

“It absolutely will help us save money,” Wilkinson said.

Green said being able to broadcast information more quickly means battalion chiefs don’t have to travel station to station, cutting down on travel time and cost. “This will be a game changer for us in terms of training and how we get out information in the future,” he said.