EL PASO, Texas --
The homes on Saipan Street in Central El Paso don't look very valuable. They are old, abandoned and vandalized. Sunday afternoon those old homes became extremely valuable to the El Paso Fire Department. Battalion Chief Ralph Johnson of the El Paso Fire Department told KFOX why.
"What we are doing is we are cutting holes in roofs. We are forcing entry through windows and doors. Anything we are going to find on a regular residential fire is what we are practicing on here," he said.
The Saipan neighborhood was badly damaged in the 2006 floods and the city determined the street was not a safe place for residence to rebuild. The city bought most of the homes on the street. Before the homes are torn down to make way for a ponding area, the city made an agreement with the fire department to hold training seminars for firefighters in the homes.
Matt Hiett is the captain for Ladder 5 of the El Paso Fire Department. he said the training is a rare opportunity.
"Usually when we come across a structure like this it is actually on fire, so it is a good opportunity for us to train," Hiett said.
The fire training will be held until Tuesday on different homes on Saipan Street .
