In the wake of Sept. 11, the University has worked to build upon a global need for training to increase emergency preparedness and security. Therefor, this spring LSU has combined several campus resources under one center, the National Center for Security Research and Training.
One contributor to the new center, the LSU Fire and Emergency Training Institute, or FETI, offers vocational education for practically any emergency situation that can arise.
      The majority of the hands-on training is directed towards industrial groups, which register through their companies for a three-day course. FETI attracts trainees from around the world to participate in the course, which is required by OSHA regulations for safety in industrial plants. The regulation calls for Industrial Fire Brigades to participate in a yearly refresher course in one of four centers in the United States, including LSU.
As part of the three-day course, trainees work first in a classroom and then apply the techniques to the field in live burns. The Institute has several structures representing possible fire locations in chemical plants and tanker ships. At the burn location, the firefighters suit up into full gear and tactically fight the fire in groups of five. David Cox, program manager for Industrial Marine Fire Training, commented on the energy involved in the field training sessions, “If you want to feel the strain of firefighting, add an extra seventy pounds to your body and then jog five miles in the summer.”
The LSU Institute also offers training in several other areas, including aircraft rescue simulations, hazardous material containment, structural collapse rescue and even a program for response to the detonation of weapons of mass destruction.