STOW—The Massachusetts Department of Fire Services (DFS) today announced the expansion of firefighter survival training at the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy (MFA) with the addition of a new mobile self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) training maze. The new training system will increase access to realistic, hands-on instruction for recruit and veteran municipal firefighters across the Commonwealth.
“One of DFS’s most important responsibilities is ensuring firefighters across Massachusetts have access to the highest-quality training possible,” said Public Safety and Security Secretary Gina Kwon. “That means continually investing in modern equipment and training environments that reflect the dangerous and unpredictable conditions firefighters face in the field. Better training builds more confident, better prepared firefighters, and better prepared firefighters help make communities across Massachusetts safer.”
The new mobile training maze expands the MFA’s ability to deliver firefighter survival training both on campus and directly to local fire departments. Combined with the Academy’s existing mobile training resources, it will increase access to realistic, hands-on SCBA training for recruits and experienced firefighters alike. The unit also replaces the Academy’s original Stow-based SCBA maze, ensuring this critical training remains available for years to come.
This year, DFS marks 30 years of training Massachusetts firefighters through the MFA. Since 1996, the Academy has prepared thousands of firefighters for the challenges of the job while continually evolving its training programs to reflect new technologies, emerging hazards, and best practices. The addition of the new mobile SCBA training maze builds on that legacy by giving more firefighters the opportunity to train in realistic, high-pressure environments that build the skills and confidence they need to respond safely and effectively when lives are on the line.
“The SCBA Training Maze is one of our most frequently requested training tools,” said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine. “This new mobile unit allows us to deliver critical survival training to more firefighters in more communities while strengthening the MFA’s ability to prepare recruits and veteran firefighters for the dangerous and unpredictable conditions they face. Providing firefighters with realistic training is one of the best investments we can make in their safety and the safety of the communities they serve.”
Inside the maze, firefighters navigate dark, confined, and unfamiliar environments while wearing full turnout gear and SCBA. The training is designed to build confidence under stress, improve air management, and reinforce the skills firefighters rely on during searches, rescues, and self-extrication.
Last year, the MFA’s Springfield-based mobile SCBA maze supported training for more than 500 municipal firefighters. The addition of a second roadworthy mobile unit will expand training opportunities for fire departments across Massachusetts while continuing to support recruit training at the Stow campus.
The new mobile maze is one of several investments that have strengthened training at the MFA in recent years, alongside a forcible entry trailer, flashover training prop, search and rescue buildings on the Bridgewater and Springfield campuses, a hazardous materials leak prop, and a Mobile Extraction Unit used to decontaminate firefighting gear.
DFS invested approximately $500,000 in the new training system, supported in large part by a $435,000 FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant. The investment reflects DFS’s continued commitment to providing firefighters across Massachusetts with access to realistic, state-of-the-art training.