Update: St. Augusta Fire Department Practices Fighting Fire [PHOTOS]

ST. AUGUSTA (WJON News) -- On Saturday a farmhouse in St. Augusta was fully engulfed in flames, but for a very good reason.

The St. Augusta Fire Department was recently given a six-bedroom farmhouse to train its firefighters.  Over the past several weeks, crews have been practicing critical, search, and rescue skills.  On Saturday, the crew's training culminated with a fully engulfed home.

Lutgen Construction of St. Cloud contacted the department late last year, offering the six-bedroom home on the property where the company is going to break ground for a new facility.

St. Augusta Fire Chief Joe Kramer says, "So many skills can be learned from the opportunity like where to park the rig on scene, pulling hose from a truck, scene layout, and more."

Kramer says he believes they've had only three or four houses to do live training on in the 18 years the department has been around.  The St. Augusta Fire Department includes 27 members who cover the St. Augusta city limits and mutual aid to surrounding cities.

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The burn at 23769 State Highway 15 started at about 11:00 a.m. on Saturday.

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