Public Safety Academy

The Tucson Public Safety Academy (PSA) is a 142 acre facility that serves as a training center for many Southern Arizona law enforcement agencies, fire departments, and the local community college.

10001 South Wilmot Road. Tucson AZ 85756 (I-10 and Wilmot Road)
Main number: (520) 791-4701

Mission Statement

The mission of the Tucson Fire Academy is to ensure that the Tucson Fire Department provides well-qualified, well-trained and physically able public servants to protect and serve the community.

Tucson Fire Department Training

For the purposes of training only, the PSA houses a variety of firefighting and medical vehicles inside of a large apparatus bay. The bay not only protects the vehicles and equipment from the elements, but also provides trainees a representation of the inside of a fire station.

A large pond consisting of rainwater supplies 1500 gallons per minute to the training grounds which minimizes the need to connect to the clean municipal supply of drinking water. All of the training ground drains flow directly back into the pond to keep waste to a minimum.

Certified CPAT course - (Candidate Physical Abilities Test)

The PSA also has a certified CPAT course, vehicle fire prop, a roof ladder prop, a flashover prop, a compressed gas cylinder fire prop, a vertical ventilation prop, vehicles for hydraulic rescue tool practice, a confined space area, a full scale transmission tower for technical rescue practice, a technical fire engine driving course both on and off road, a natural gas line fire prop AKA “The Dragon”, a 2 story burn room, a maze room, a NIST prop, and a 6 story tower for exercise and high rise training.

• The vehicle fire prop teaches trainees how to safely approach a vehicle that is on fire and how to properly open up doors, hoods, and trunks.
• The roof ladder prop lets trainees practice climbing up and down a roof ladder while also carrying a second roof ladder on their shoulder for the purpose of placing it on a pitched roof.

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  Fire Trainees with Roof Ladder Prop

• The flash-over prop demonstrates specific fire behavior in a safe and controlled environment.
• The compressed gas cylinder prop allows trainees to practice the proper application of water on a controlled live compressed gas cylinder fire.
• The vertical ventilation prop is for practicing using sounding tools and chainsaws to safely vertically ventilate a structure.
• The confined space area is for learning and practicing how to safely enter a confined space area for the purpose of removing a victim.

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  Training on Vertical Ventilation Prop

The PSA has a variety of intact vehicles that are for the sole purpose of practicing removing trapped victims from a motor vehicle accident.

• The fire engine driving course AKA “The Rodeo” is for prospective and current engineers to practice driving a large fire suppression apparatus in a variety of real life technical situations.
• “The Dragon” is a live fire prop that simulates a natural gas line that has broken and caught on fire.

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  Fire Trainees with "The Dragon" Prop

• The burn room and maze room are usually combined to simulate a 1 or 2 story house fire and are good practice for victim searching and fire suppression.
• The NIST prop is a simple live fire prop that teaches some of the newest developments in firefighting tactics. The 6 story tower has many different purposes from high rise operations, fire ground survival, ground ladder practice, aerial placement practice, and physical training.

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  Fire Trainees with NIST Prop

SALETC

Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Center

The SALETC basic training program is designed to prepare recruit officers with the basic minimal skills that will be required of them to be effective law enforcement professionals. The PSA has a recently improved 10-acre emergency vehicle operations center, a multi-use firearms training center which allows for training in all available law enforcement weapons systems, multiple classrooms, a recently upgraded mat room, and a dorm facility.

LEO Trainees at SALETC

Training at SALETC is accomplished through classroom lecture, hands-on training, and leverages the use of technology in order to provide you certification as an Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training (AZPOST) Peace Officer during the course of a 23-week training program.

LEO Trainees

The SALETC training is a para-military training program that is both physically and mentally demanding. In order to be successful, you must be self-disciplined, motivated, and responsible and you will learn to accomplish goals through the use of teamwork while maintaining a positive attitude.

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