Training

The focus of Opelika Fire Department’s Training Division echoes our mission statement in that we will, ‘arrive for requests for service as the best trained and most professional firefighters in the State of Alabama.’ We accomplish this by creating a foundation of knowledge that everything else is built upon. The training our firefighters receive in recruit school remains strong and intact throughout their careers. We believe in getting the fundamentals of the job right every time we are called to serve.

Our focus revolves around the following:

Training that stresses safety over tradition

The utilization of modern technology, equipment, and tactics

Creating a culture that every firefighter is a teacher

Firefighters of today are required to not only be able to do the physical side of the job, but also perform in the classroom. Our personnel log hundreds of hours each year in a classroom setting to maintain continuing education hours and to receive professional certifications that help them prepare for promotional testing. Students are required to have in-depth knowledge of computer systems and software which also translates into their daily shift work. Since our Regional Training Center designation through the Alabama Fire College, we have the ability to not only provide unique training opportunities to our own personnel, but also to students throughout the entire country.

OFD - A Regional Training Center

In 2021, the City made a commitment to invest in further developing our Training Center. The facility recently received several important upgrades, including additional classroom space, renovations to existing buildings, signage, paving, and landscaping. These additions and improvements helped us to be selected as a R.T.C. (Regional Training Center) by the Alabama Fire College. During the evaluation of the Opelika Fire Training Center, Executive Director Matt Russell stated, “The Alabama Fire College staff were extremely impressed at the investment the City of Opelika has made to ensure their fire department has facilities and other resources to provide training in a safe manner. It is obvious to me based on the financial investment in their training facilities, the emergency responders and by extension, the citizens, in the Auburn-Opelika area have the support of their Fire Chiefs, Mayors and other elected officials.”