The emergence of virtual reality (VR) in fire service education offers a transformative, cost-effective, on-demand tool for preparing firefighters for real-life fireground experiences. By leveraging an immersive VR experience, fire department trainers can provide hands-on training without exposing students to dangerous situations. The VR environment allows students to interact with their colleagues and environment so they can practice critical skills, such as decision-making, fire suppression, search and rescue, and hazardous materials handling, in a controlled setting. Moreover, VR training enables students to repeat exercises multiple times, fostering muscle memory and enhancing decision-making abilities and allows educators to monitor individual performance, identify strengths and weaknesses, and tailor training programs accordingly. Beyond the training aspect, VR can serve as a powerful educational tool, offering insights into fire behavior, building construction, and incident management. VR training is possible in a variety of environments. Scenarios may be delivered in single (Training Centers) or multiple locations (Individual firehouses or mutual aid departments). This allows for a training environment that meets different needs such as keeping units in their firehouse to remain in service. This session will include a live demo for attendees to watch the participants perform in training evolutions using VR.
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