THE Fire Service has submitted plans for the first phase of a new £45 million training facility near Cookstown, Co Tyrone.
The learning and development centre at Desertcreat features a six-storey tactical fire-fighting building where crews can be trained in live emergency scenarios.
It also includes a single-storey building for a classroom and a new access route from Dungannon Road.
The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) hopes construction of this £4.2m first phase will begin this year and be finished by January 2019.
A joint training college for the police, fire and prison services had initially been planned for the Desertcreat site.
But the project, first announced back in 2004, was abandoned after years of setbacks and spiralling costs.
Around £45 million is due to be spent on the overall NIFRS project at Desertcreat, while police and prison services are investing in training facilities elsewhere.
Michael Graham, assistant chief fire and rescue officer and project lead, described the planning application as a "huge milestone".
"We have worked closely with the design team, from Hamilton Architects, on the plans for Phase 1 and are confident that what we have created is fit for purpose to allow us to train our firefighters in live fire rescue scenarios throughout their careers," he said.
The UUP's Trevor Wilson, chair of Mid Ulster council, said: "This is very welcome news for the site at Desertcreat and, subject to planning being granted, for the local economy of mid Ulster.
"While we had aspired to see a multi-agency college established in Cookstown, this nonetheless represents a substantial investment by the fire service and is the first step in a two-stage development process which will meet the long-term training needs of the service."
