Alva fire training facility boasts only tank battery setup in state

 

November 19, 2017

A crane lowers modular building components in place at the Alva fire training facility. The buildings will be used as office and classroom space.

Alva Fire Marshal Bryan Miller has a passion for firefighting and for training those who fight fires. He spoke to the City of Alva Tourism Committee Wednesday, Nov. 15, about a need for funds to improve local and area training.

Miller, who is also assistant fire chief for Alva, spent many hours studying and training for his fire marshal certification. With certification to teach other firefighters, he is now focusing on the training facility in Alva.

"It was a passion of mine to get this training facility up to tend to the volunteers within our area and our district as well as our local firefighters," says Miller.

The facility is located on the west side of 14th Street and north of the swimming pool and baseball field, Alva Fire Chief Jack Haltom built the facility in 1973, obtaining the land, building a pole tower and adding a concrete box structure that is still there. The aging tower had to be removed, but the concrete box is still being used for live fire training, Miller said.

In 1993 Northwest Technology construction classes and the City of Alva cooperated to build a training tower which still stands. After more than 20 years, materials in the training tower have started to rot. The roof needed to be replaced. Floors were damaged by water so all three levels were ripped out.

In 2006 Alva hosted the Northwest Regional Fire School for the state. At the time, Miller said, Alva was told the lack of motels and classrooms would prevent scheduling future schools here.

He spoke with SandRidge Energy, and they donated a tank battery and heater treater, the only such setup in the state of Oklahoma. Miller has been attending training in College Station, Texas, where he got the idea for the tank battery setup.

BN&SF Railroad sent Miller to College Station for training on different railcars. Then he was sent to Pueblo, Colorado, for training on crude oil disasters. In Colorado, "they crashed up 47 tank cars and trained me up there for a week how to mitigate and fight those fires." In the future, he hopes to acquire a pressurized tank car for the training site.

Miller then applied for and received a $200,000 grant from Share Trust to build a 100 x 100 foot concrete pad and construct a a two story live fire training facility. The training tower building now has new roofing, flooring, decking and siding. Miller said the tower is recertified for technical rescue operations like rope rescue.

In addition to the grant, the fire department has received donations totaling another $148,500. SandRidge Energy donated $10,000 worth of pipe to construct a fence. Williams Company provided primer and paint for the fence worth $2,000. SandRidge Energy cleaned and installed four 300-barrel tanks and a heater treater, worth $58,000, on the site. The City of Alva provided labor for the concrete pad ($24,000) and constructed a water line and fire hydrant ($5,000). Woods County provided heavy equipment for dirt work and 30 semi loads of crusher run rock, a $37,500 donation. The Alva volunteer firefighters fund paid for doors, wood and re-roofing of the training tower at $10,000. The City of Alva also provided a burn car for $2,000.

Oklahoma thunderstorms bring lightning that often strikes and sets fire to oilfield tank batteries in this area. This tank battery installation will be used to train area firefighters to handle such situations.

Miller said the facility needs about $15,000 to finish the installation. Finishing the welding of the pipe fence would require about $5,000. Another $1,000 is needed to install the gas piping. The remaining $9,000 is for "tinning" the training tower building. Miller said covering the building in metal will slow down damage and deterioration. Window openings can be covered to prevent leaks and vandalism. He said the building has experienced broken windows and a hole knocked in a new door. "We just want to get rid of all the glass," he said.

Bill Johnson Correctional Center Warden Becky Guffy has agreed to provide inmate workers at no cost to paint the fence for the training area.

Miller is starting a Firefighter I class at Northwest Technology in December. A couple of weeks ago, he held a pre-enrollment. About 60 firefighters from a three-county area expressed interest in the course. He has also applied to hold the Northwest Regional Fire School in Alva in 2018.

"The word's getting around that we have these tank battery props, and people are excited," said Miller. "I'm almost there, and that's why I'm coming to you guys tonight."

The tourism committee voted unanimously to provide up to $15,000 in funding for the fire department project.

 

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