Controlled burn set for Ferguson Township property. When will you see smoke?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Alpha Fire Company will conduct a controlled burn June 20-21 in Ferguson Township.
- Smoke and fire will be present at the site throughout Sunday’s burn.
- This will be the first acquired structure burn in the Centre Region in about 30 years.
State College’s Alpha Fire Company will oversee a controlled burn this weekend to help train its firefighters.
The fire company and the Centre Region Fire Protection Program will conduct an “acquired structure burn” at 2890 Shingletown Road in Ferguson Township. Crews will be on-site from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 20, and Sunday, June 21.
The acquired structure burn, which requires the permission of the property owner, should provide valuable live fire training for firefighters, Alpha Fire Company wrote online. County records show the structure set for Sunday’s burn sits on property owned by Penn State near the border of Ferguson and Harris townships.
“This training is particularly significant, as it will be the first acquired structure burn conducted in the Centre Region in approximately 30 years,” Alpha Fire Company wrote online. “Opportunities of this scale are rare and provide firefighters with invaluable hands-on experience in a realistic environment.”
No road closures are planned for burn, but drivers are asked to remain aware of fire department personnel and vehicles in the area. Several tankers will fill at the State College Borough Water Authority before shuttling water back to the burn site.
Smoke conditions and fire will be present at the site throughout Sunday’s burn. Though the Centre County 911 Center is aware of the burn, community members can direct non-emergency concerns to 800-479-0050.
Emergency response coverage in the Centre Region will not be interrupted by the training exercises, which were approved by the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
“Training opportunities such as this are critical for your Alpha volunteers to gain practical, realistic, and hands-on experience,” Alpha Fire Company wrote online. “While firefighters train year-round in a variety of settings, opportunities to train in environments that closely replicate actual emergency incidents are few and far between.”
Alpha Fire Company’s weekend burn marks the second controlled burn in Centre County in June. The Bellefonte Fire Department used the vacant home at 116 Paradise Road in Benner Township for a training exercise on June 6.
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