A letter of intent was presented to town council Tuesday afternoon between TransCanada energy, the MD of Foothills and the Town of High River.

TransCanada has indicated their desire to donate 60 acres of land for the development of an Emergency Services Training Centre.

High River Fire Chief Len Zebedee says the types of training will vary over time but he's got a plan for the facility it right out of the gate.

"A live burn tower is our first focus on it and a vehicle extrication yard for doing vehicle extrication work and teaching our staff the proper procedures and a driving track where we can teach our staff how to properly driver our large rigs."

He says right now they have to rent facilities in Calgary for any training they do.

He says it's a logistical nightmare getting crews and equipment to Calgary not to mention the fact it takes them out of their service area.

Zebedee says it's a challenge getting the necessary training for his crews because they have to leave town and then rent the facilities elsewhere.

"The driving training has been difficult one. We've had  to go to Calgary and use a driving track there that we rent. The same with the other training facilities like the live burn towers, we've had to rent those facilities from Calgary or Lethbridge."

He says this land donation will enable them to provide the latest and best training in their own backyard.

"It's a lot of big logistics to get man power and crew and our trucks up there and taking them out of our community and out of our service area to do that training. It's a big dollar cost to us right now to provide that training."

He says the proposed site will be at the corner of Highway 2A and 466 Avenue.

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