Firefighters to train inside Brownsburg warehouse before opening

Misfits Fire Training Foundation, Firefighter Air and Brownsburg Fire Territory will bring firefighters into a 1.65 million-square-foot HarperCollins facility in Brownsburg, Indiana, for hands-on commercial fireground training on Sept. 8 or Sept. 9, 2026. The event is designed to help crews study a rare unfinished building before an emergency and sharpen tactics for the state’s growing number of large distribution and warehouse sites.

Why it matters: - Large commercial and distribution buildings can be difficult and dangerous for fire crews to navigate during an emergency. - Training inside a structure before it opens can help firefighters understand access, hose movement, visibility and water-supply challenges before conditions become life-threatening. - Indiana’s continued buildout of mega-warehouses and distribution centers is increasing the need for practical fireground preparation.

What happened: - Misfits Fire Training Foundation, in association with Firefighter Air and Brownsburg Fire Territory, will host "Dominate the Commercial Fireground" in Brownsburg, Indiana. - Firefighters may attend on Sept. 8 or Sept. 9, 2026, with the same program delivered each day. - The event starts with three hours of classroom instruction at the Brownsburg Fire Territory Training Center. - Participants then move to the HarperCollins Brownsburg facility, a 1.65 million-square-foot building still under construction, for hands-on operations. - Registration is limited to maximize participation and instructor engagement. - The cost is $100 per day. - Registration is available at the event registration link.

The details: - HarperCollins is allowing firefighters access to the Brownsburg facility for the training. - Thomas Wakefield, vice president of warehouse operations at HarperCollins Publishers, said the company is pleased to support the training programs led by Misfits Fire Training Foundation and Firefighter Air. - Jeff Kish, president of the Misfits Training Foundation, said the access lets firefighters study the building before they are forced to make high-risk decisions during an emergency. - Training is designed around the hazards of large commercial structures, including long travel distances, complex hose layouts, limited visibility and heavy demands on personnel and resources. - The unfinished building lets firefighters see features and construction methods that are normally hidden after a facility opens. - The opportunity is rare because most firefighter training happens in acquired structures, towers or simulations. - Fire departments are not always involved in the early planning and design phases of large developments, which can leave access and response decisions to be sorted out later. - The training is meant to give Indiana departments a practical model for responding to new commercial and distribution facilities across the state. - Clark Lamping, a 27-year veteran and 16-year captain with the Clark County, Nev., Fire Department, will lead the training. - The instructor team also includes Captain Jimmy Davis of the Chicago Fire Department, Andy Plofkin of Elkhart Brass, Battalion Chief Kyle Smith of Cobb County Fire & Emergency Services in Georgia, Chris Sleigher, Ed Collett and Adam Vanderfeyst of the Detroit Fire Department. - Lamping said big-box fires become major problems when firefighters fail to recognize the complex and hazardous environment these buildings create.

Between the lines: - The event reflects a broader shift in fire service training toward pre-incident familiarity with large commercial properties. - Access to an unfinished building gives firefighters something simulations cannot fully replicate: scale, layout and construction realities in a real structure. - The program also signals that commercial developers and fire departments may benefit from earlier coordination before occupancy begins. - Mike Gagliano, president of Firefighter Air, said getting involved before a building opens is far better than trying to figure it out after the alarm sounds. - State announcements in 2026 of major projects such as John Deere’s $125 million, 1.2 million-square-foot distribution center in northwest Indiana and Boston Scientific’s $138 million, 500,000-square-foot global distribution operation in Plainfield underscore that trend.

What's next: - Firefighters will choose one of the two training days in September. - Participants will work directly with the instructor cadre during the practical sessions. - The event is expected to give departments a repeatable model for preparing for similar facilities elsewhere in Indiana. - Organizers say the training is intended to help crews better handle the hazards, tactics and operational demands of modern warehouse and distribution fires.

The bottom line: - A rare chance to train inside a massive commercial building before opening could give firefighters a meaningful advantage when the alarm sounds.