NORWICH – When lives are on the line, no amount of training can be too much. That was the sentiment of area firefighters on Saturday as the Norwich Fire Department hosted a special training seminar in the City of Norwich.

Firefighter training exercises were conducted at a house adjacent to R.J. Fahy Funeral Home on Rexford Street. The house, slated for demolition and owned by the funeral home, was first handed over to the Norwich Fire Department for hands-on training prior to being razed – a rare opportunity for local firefighters to put their knowledge into practice.

“There are several structures around the city that are abandoned, but it’s not too often we are given one that’s still safe to use for training,” explained Norwich Fire Department Chief Tracy Chawgo. “A lot of vacant structures aren’t even safe to be in, so it’s just not possible to use them for training. If it’s a structure that has been condemned, we generally can’t use it. Safety is a priority.”

Saturday’s seminar was facilitated by two outside area firefighters, one from Florida and the other a member of the Webster Fire Department near Rochester. Training coordinators and members of the Norwich Fire Department had only days to put it together but ultimately, the exercise attracted more than 30 firefighters from Norwich as well as surrounding departments including Sherburne, Oxford, Afton, Gilbertsville and Mount Upton.