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As development flourishes across Morristown, an essential component in keeping the expanding community safe, fire defense, is one play closer to getting on the field.

City council during its Tuesday meeting authorized by unanimous vote the construction and installation of a new Morristown Fire Department training facility on Thompson Creek Road, near its intersection with East Morris Boulevard.

“It’s a game changer,” Fire Chief Clark Taylor said.

The pre-engineered facility will be constructed on 2.5 acres of property adjacent to the planned new location of Fire Station No. 3 which is approximately 1,200 feet from the East Morris intersection, on the left.

Council accepted the bid for the new facility, referred to by the MFD as a tower, from Fire Training Structures at $584,971.

“This is the next step in the ongoing investment of our fire service. It also is responsible for the smiles you see on Chief Taylor’s face,” City Administrator Tony Cox said. “This training facility was discussed in the budget deliberations for the current year and funds have been allocated. There will be associated costs as we develop the larger complex, with the site development and setting of this facility and construction of a new Fire Station No. 3.

“This is a monumental step,” Cox added.

The facility will be used to provide practical and realistic training for firefighting and emergency services personnel in a controlled environment which replicates actual conditions encountered on an emergency incident scene.

The need for an upgrade to fire training in Morristown has been on city leaders’ radar for a while now.

“It’s been in the works a couple of years,” Clark said. “The timing just worked out right with building the new station. The property adjacent was just perfect for a training tower.”

The acreage is substantial enough to house the props that go along with a training tower: for example, those used for extrication scenarios and fighting flammable liquid fires.

“It will keep our skills updated; it will be used by the entire department,” Taylor said. “There will be two burn rooms in the structure: one is for liquid propane fires; one is for Class A fuels: wood, pallets and those kind of things. The temperature is monitored at the floor and the ceiling in each burn room to maintain safety.

“This will allow us to keep our skills maintained in a relatively safe environment,” Taylor said.

A rough estimate for construction and installation of the tower is nine to 12 months.

It’s a necessity for the city’s ISO Rating, a score determined by the Insurance Services Office.

“The ISO Rating directly affects the rate of homeowners’ insurance. Every parcel of land in the county and city has a fire rating attached to it. The lower the number, the better your premium rates,” Taylor said.

Morristown has a Class 2 rating – “We’re very proud of that,” Taylor said.

The MFD trains every week of the year. To maintain an ISO rating of Class 2, the department must participate in 240 hours of classroom training and eight hands-on drills each year.

In addition, the Tennessee Commission on Firefighting requires a pre-approved 40-hour training program. The commission certifies 14 positions for the MFD (Firefighter I and II, Fire Instructor I and II, Fire Officer I and II, Pumper Driver/Operator, Aerial Driver/Operator, Apparatus Driver/Operator, Wildland Firefighter, Airport Firefighter, Safety Officer, and Public Educator I and II).

The largest amount of activity time is spent in training. Each member of the MFD must have some understanding of chemistry, physics, hydraulics, and emergency medicine, all of which are complicated by rapidly advancing science, technology and communication methods.

The department both participates in and contributes instructors for programs administered through the Tennessee Fire Service and Codes Enforcement Academy as well as the Northeast Tennessee Regional Fire Training Association.

The training tower will benefit more than just the MFD.

“We will share, I’ll put it that way,” Taylor said. “Other communities have been very gracious, letting us use their fire training centers, especially during fire recruit school.”

The total price of the fire training facility, according to Assistant City Administrator Andrew Ellard, was within the price range as allocated and anticipated by city staff.

Council also approved that city staff apply for the 2022 Assistance to Firefighters Grant in a total amount of $250,800 offered through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The grant is 90/10 federal/ city split.

“We’re asking for your permission, as is the practice before we make application for a grant program,” Cox said. “This is a competitive grant,

The program is designed to address the needs of national fire services. This grant is 90/10 federal/ city split with the cost of federal share in the amount of $225,720 and city’s share of $25,080. Application will be made to purchase 33 Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus packs (included with two air bottles and high temperature mask).

The items will enhance the safety and proficiency in rescue situations, according to Ellard.

ISO has evolved substantially since its inception. ISO was created in 1971 when several rating bureaus consolidated and formed a non-profit association of insurers. By 1993, ISO had been reorganized as a for-profit independent corporation. In 2008, it created a new company called Verisk. ISO went public the following year and became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Verisk. As a subsidiary of a public company, ISO is no longer controlled by insurers.