For Immediate Release
Contact: Daniel Wackershauser, Marketing and PR Specialist
Phone: 608.822.2303
Mail: 1800 Bronson Blvd., Fennimore, WI 53809
Date of Release: October 5, 2026
Fennimore Fire Department takes training into spotlight
Fennimore -The partnership between Southwest Wisconsin Technical College and area emergency service agencies was on display recently as members of the Fennimore Fire Department conducted hands-on training at the college’s firefighter training area.
The training coincided with a visit from Fred Loomis, publisher and photographer with the Wisconsin Fire Journal, who was in Fennimore to gather information and photographs for an upcoming feature on the Fennimore Fire Department.
Fennimore Fire Chief Todd Bresee contacted Karl Sandry, Southwest Tech fire service training coordinator and lead instructor, about conducting part of the department’s training at Southwest Tech so the college’s training facility could be included in the magazine feature. “I’m glad to be here,” said Loomis. “Fennimore is a well-run department.”
The Fennimore Fire Department regularly uses Southwest Tech’s facilities for training, according to Sandry. During Tuesday’s session, firefighters were able to conduct exercises involving search and rescue, smoke and fire scenarios. The facility also includes a car fire training prop. “This is a great facility,” said Bresee. “We are grateful that this is available to us. It works out great.”
Being located in Fennimore makes the college a convenient training partner for the department, but Sandry said the facility’s reach extends well beyond the community. Departments from Cobb, Lancaster, Boscobel and Platteville have also utilized the facility.
The training area was designed to provide firefighters with a controlled environment where they can develop and maintain skills without having to depend on the availability of a donated structure. In addition to fire training, the facility can be used for search and rescue, rope rescue and confined-space exercises. Law enforcement personnel also use the facility for academy and continuing training.
For Sandry, that versatility is important because it gives emergency responders throughout the region access to realistic training opportunities that may not be available in their own communities.
The facility also provides greater control over when and how training exercises take place. In the past, fire service classes often depended on donated structures for live-fire training, and the timing of those donations did not always align with class schedules. Southwest Tech’s facility allows instructors to plan exercises around the needs of students and firefighters while providing a more controlled setting.
The Fennimore Fire Department also uses the site for extrication training, bringing vehicles to the facility so firefighters can practice the techniques required to safely remove occupants from damaged vehicles. Members of the department who are also instructors at Southwest Tech help facilitate training at the site.
The recent visit provided an opportunity to showcase not only the Fennimore Fire Department but also the relationship between local emergency responders and Southwest Tech.
The Wisconsin Fire Journal is published six times a year and features fire departments from around the state. With hundreds of fire departments serving Wisconsin communities, the selection of Fennimore provides an opportunity to tell the story of the local department while highlighting the resources available to emergency responders in southwest Wisconsin.
For Southwest Tech, the evening represented what the firefighter training area was designed to accomplish: providing local and regional emergency service professionals with a place to train, strengthen their skills and prepare to serve their communities.