Firefighters intentionally set this house on East Frederick Street on fire Sunday and used the occasion to conduct drills and training exercises. An intentionally set fire was burning inside 528 E. Frederick St. on Sunday afternoon and firefighters had the home surrounded with hoses ready to go.

There was no rush in their efforts, however, as the firefighters waited patiently outside the home until the fire was deemed big enough.

Though their jobs come with daily doses of the unexpected, firefighters from several area departments assembled in Gaffney on Sunday for a tightly choreographed training exercise that ultimately reduced an old home to rubble.

Between start and finish, firefighters were able to practice their techniques at least a dozen times. Though they knew what to expect when they went into the home, organizers of the exercise say it was extremely valuable.

"You always have to review your basics," said Lt. Chris Weaver of the Gaffney Fire Department, who oversaw the event.

Property owner Chris Spencer, who bought the vacant home several months ago, donated the use of the building to the Gaffney Fire Department for a live fire training program. Spencer said the building was too dilapidated to remodel. He will have a bulldozer remove the rubble and says maybe one day he will be able to use the lot, and the vacant lot next to it that he also owns, for commercial purposes.

Weaver said every detail was carefully planned.

Firefighters prepared the building more than a week ago and the home was checked from top to bottom as organizers made their training plans. One area of the home, for instance, was deemed unsafe to walk on so that area of the home was cordoned off.

The home was sound enough overall, however, that Weaver said they were able to set up four different burn zones that firefighters could attack multiple times.

"We could get 20 to 30 burns if everything goes right," he said.

It was unclear Sunday if they would ever get that many burns out of the home, however. Fire reaching the attic would make interior firefighting unsafe, so firefighters kept dowsing the attic with water to keep the training going as long as they could.

Joining Gaffney Firefighters on Sunday were members of Grassy Pond Volunteer Fire Department, Corinth Volunteer Fire Department, Blacksburg Volunteer Fire Department and members of the Patterson Springs Fire Department from North Carolina.

Every team that entered the building was backed up by a safety team. Watchful eyes, including those of City Fire Instructor Scott Coleman, were posted on every side of the building as well