The Albert Lea Police Department last month took part in training with the Albert Lea Fire Department that may help save lives and property.

Officers were trained on how to assist the Albert Lea Fire Department at the scene of a fire. Training took place across the street from City Hall. Officers were instructed on connecting a hose to a hydrant and utilizing the fire hose to save time and be efficient at the scene of a fire until additional resources can arrive.

Training took place throughout the month of August. Each officer was trained in one of the four sessions that were conducted. Each session took approximately a half hour to an hour.

“Not every hydrant is the same,” said Jeffery Laskowske, deputy fire chief at the Albert Lea Fire Department. “So if we don’t go through a training system, the officers could have no clue how to know which hydrant uses what adaptor.”

Laskowske said the training was a success.

“It went very well,” he said.

“Everyone was very open about it and excited. It gave us a chance to work together in a calm, easy environment where we could get a lot of things accomplished.”

He said the training was important because it saves time.

“In a fire situation, seconds count,” Laskowske said.

This was the first year the training took place, and Laskowske hopes to have training sessions once a year.

“We’re always trying to make ourselves better,” he said. “We don’t have the resources to do it all ourselves.”

Sixteen people are employed at the Fire Department. The department features five person shifts with a four-man minimum.