Smoke on the Tarmac: Live Fire Training at the Lubbock Airport This Week

You may not recognize this as a cool thing, but it is.

It's very cool that we have live-fire training at the Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport. Of course, if you don't know it's happening, it can be a terrifying thing to see smoke coming from that area.

So let's stop there for a moment. There will be live-fire training at the airport through Wednesday, so there is no cause for concern or worry.

This type of training gives fire fighters an incredibly unique opportunity to see how fire behaves (and misbehaves) in these types of situations. Just as you may practice the guitar every day so you don't mess up a song, the practice gives the firefighters a chance to be ready for when they get the call. Knowing what to do ahead of time could absolutely save lives and keep the fires from spreading elsewhere.

I can't say whether this kind of training happens at other airports, but I know we host firefighters from other areas here to train at the Aircraft Rescue Training Facility. Keep in mind if they're visiting Lubbock they're supporting our economy as well. I wonder if they get Firehouse Subs?

This is just one of those cool, under-the-radar things that Lubbock can take pride in. We can all deal with some scary smoke from time to time if it helps firemen, and I presume a few others, with their preparedness.