Capt. Joel Jones, left, Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd and Kingsport Mayor Pat Shull perform a ‘hose coupling’ as part of Monday’s ribbon cutting ceremony for the Kingsport Fire Department’s new fire training facility.
Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd talks about the new fire training facility Monday during a ribbon cutting.
Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd talks about the fire department’s fire training facility at Monday’s ribbon cutting.
Capt. Joel Jones, left, Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd and Kingsport Mayor Patrick Shull perform a "hose coupling" as part of the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new fire training facility.
A mural of a firefighter adorns the hall of the new fire training facility.
A mural of firefighters adorns the hall of the Kingsport Fire Department’s new fire training facility off Wilcox Drive.
A mural of firefighters adorns the hall of the new fire training facility.
Capt. Joel Jones, left, Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd and Kingsport Mayor Pat Shull perform a ‘hose coupling’ as part of Monday’s ribbon cutting ceremony for the Kingsport Fire Department’s new fire training facility.
Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd talks about the new fire training facility Monday during a ribbon cutting.
Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd talks about the fire department’s fire training facility at Monday’s ribbon cutting.
Capt. Joel Jones, left, Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd and Kingsport Mayor Patrick Shull perform a "hose coupling" as part of the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new fire training facility.
A mural of a firefighter adorns the hall of the new fire training facility.
A mural of firefighters adorns the hall of the Kingsport Fire Department’s new fire training facility off Wilcox Drive.
A mural of firefighters adorns the hall of the new fire training facility.
A fire training facility in the works for almost 18 years became a reality on Monday.
The Kingsport Fire Department, along with local officials, cut the ribbon on the opening of the fire department’s new $2 million training center, which is located on Horsecreek Lane off Wilcox Drive.
“Here it is, guys,” Kingsport Fire Chief Scotty Boyd told the crowd shortly before the ribbon cutting. “This is something for us to be able to use. This is something that everyone stepped up.”
The facility holds a 40-person classroom that is also able to be partitioned off into two classrooms. A large color and black- and-white mural of Kingsport firefighters battling fires welcomes people as they first enter the facility.
The building also houses a large bay, big enough for a fire truck to fit into, restrooms, a kitchen and an outdoor training classroom.
Boyd said the center was made in a way that could act as an operational fire station, if needed.
“If we had to vacate one of the fire stations, we could operate out of this facility itself,” Boyd said.
The facility is made of the training center and the burn building, as well as several props. Boyd said it not only acts as a Kingsport training facility, but it will be able to act as a regional one as well, assisting other agencies who may not be able to drive to locations such as Murfreesboro, where there are fire training facilities.
“This is not just ours,” Boyd said.
It will allow the fire department to conduct other training such as rescue, medical and emergency management.
Fire recruiting school also will be held at the new facility.
Boyd said the center started with a patch of woods, then fencing went up. In 2016, the four-story burn building was complete.
It was designed by Steve Hutton, who passed away in January, with Spoden & Wilson Consulting Engineers.
The new center now completes the fire station’s move from its old facility on Industry Drive.
Capt. Shea Payne, fire facilities manager, said the fire department started using the facility last week.
“We still have some stuff coming in,” he said. “We have some stuff coming in all the way to June.”
But the facility is already helping.
“We’ve got the ability to do four separate classrooms at the same time, all under the same roof,” he said.
Capt. Joel Jones, training officer, said the basics of what the department needs are now under the roof of the building. He said there are still some ways to expand.
He said already the facility gives the benefit of allowing multiple companies to train at once. There could still be some more technical props to put in, such as hazardous materials props.
“It’s just not fires,” he said. “Just to get where we are, it’s pretty amazing.”
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Sign up to receive news and updates from this site directly to your desktop.
Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time.
Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.
Please disable your ad blocker, whitelist our site, or purchase a subscription
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Invalid password or account does not exist
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.
Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
A receipt was sent to your email.