NORWICH – New York Central Mutual Fire Insurance Company contributed over $4,000 to Chenango County Bureau of Fire so it could purchase a $9,000 piece of training equipment that aids both young firefighters and citizens in learning the proper way to use a fire extinguisher.

The fire extinguisher training unit, the BullEx unit, provides live-fire extinguisher training in a controlled environment.

County Deputy Fire Coordinator Michael K. Beckwith said the unit generates a propane flame that can be easily controlled, the second part of the unit is a mock fire extinguisher that shoots pressurized water. The two parts are linked by sensors that record the direction and accuracy of the nozzle versus the base of the fire, as a user successful aims the unit will automatically deactivate the propane flame.