Firefighters tackle real-life training scenarios in storm-damaged building

ENGLEWOOD, Fla.—An abandoned dental care office in Englewood, heavily damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2025, served a new purpose on Tuesday. The building, which was flooded by storm surge, was used for advanced firefighter training by the Englewood Fire Department.

Rob Blasetti, the deputy chief of operations and training for the fire department, explained the large-scale scenario his firefighters had to tackle.

"This is actually part 6 of a 6-part series that we started in October," said Blasetti. "We put everything together." 

The training involved a comprehensive simulation that included responding to a dispatch call to a structure fire, which ultimately led to various emergency scenarios.

"We're going to respond in different time frames," said Blasetti. "We're going to stretch the lines of forced doors, and then a collapse is going to happen. And they're going to have to mitigate that problem."

The realistic training is designed to prepare firefighters for any situation they may face in the field. From rescuing a downed firefighter to potential roof collapses, both interior and exterior, which have become more frequent in recent times.

"We took what's happening right now in the fire service, that for whatever reason, there's been a lot of instances of collapses," said Blasetti. "Even if you're still stretching into to fight the fire, how do you cut them off of you to keep moving forward?"

Blasetti said they were able to use the abandoned dental care office for their training because of the extent of water damage it had.

"It had storm surge damage," he said. "All the drywall in the bottom 4 feet was blown out. I believe they're going to knock it down here soon, so they're allowing us to use it at this capacity before they do that."

Creighton Laster, a lieutenant firefighter for the fire department, explained the importance of using real buildings for training.

"The training facility is great for the purposes that it's designed for, but having the acquired structures really puts the realism on what we need to be able to combat the most problems that we're going to have in our area," said Laster.

This innovative use of the flood-damaged building is providing Englewood firefighters with invaluable hands-on experience, ensuring they are well-prepared for real-life emergencies.