WQXE NEWS

The Elizabethtown Fire Department is expanding its training opportunities with the construction of their new fire training facility.

“We’ll be able to do live fire burns,” said Elizabethtown Fire Chief Mark Malone. “There are three rooms that are designed. One’s designed like a kitchen, one’s designed like a bedroom, and then there’s just a general purpose open room for burning. We have the ability to repel.”

The facility is constructed using modular units which allows for a diverse range of options.

“We have forceful entry doors, forceful entry windows,” Malone said. “The interior walls are movable so we can have different configurations for scenarios. It has a Nance Drill, which is a firefighter rescue drill, and also a Denver Drill mockup, which again is a firefighter rescue drill.”

Malone says the Elizabethtown Fire Department strives to be as prepared as possible to best serve the community.

“In Kentucky, it is required that they get 100 hours of training a year,” Malone said. “Elizabethtown tries to shoot for 200 hours of training a year. We’re a small department, so we have to do basically jack-of-all-trades. We do all the rescue disciplines, plus regular firefighting, plus we run first responder EMS, so we do a lot of different things for the community, and that takes a lot of training.”

The modular facility is being constructed next to the existing State Fire Rescue Training Area 5 tower on College Street.

North Middle School will have a new principal for the 2024-2025 school year, and it is somebody with previous experience at Hardin County Schools.

HCS has announced that Traci Hunt will be moving into the principal’s office. Hunt comes to NMS after serving as assistant principal and principal at Marion C. Moore School in Louisville, principal at Bloomfield Middle School in Nelson County, and assistant principal at Bullitt East High School. The Western Kentucky University and University of the Cumberlands grad started her education career as a teacher and secondary instructional specialist at North Hardin High School.

HCS Superintendent Teresa Morgan said in a release: “Ms. Hunt brings valuable experience as she returns home. She knows how to ensure student growth in and out of the classroom. She has a strong work ethic and she will help lead North Middle School in a tremendous fashion. Our community is growing and Ms. Hunt’s experiences will help her prepare North Middle for that growth.”

Hunt replaces Jeff Lowan, who retires as principal at the end of this school year.

Work is progressing on the Buffalo Lake Connector Trail, a joint project between the City of Elizabethtown and Elizabethtown Tourism.

“The trailhead is going to be located near the railroad crossing at Dixie, and will connect all the way to Commerce Drive,” said Elizabethtown Tourism Director of Marketing Krysta Souleyrette. “It’s going to be about a mile and a half long, and there will be paved sections so it’s accessible for everyone.”

The trailhead will include amenities such as a water bottle filling station, a bike repair station, and ample seating.

Souleyrette said the connector achieves a strategic goal of connecting Downtown E-Town with the hotels on or near Commerce Drive, and adds to Elizabethtown’s outdoor recreation offerings.

“We have a wide array of outdoor trails and wonderful outdoor activities in Elizabethtown, and this is only going to enhance this, our outdoor attractions and activities for community members as well as visitors,” Souleyrette said.

The connector trail is set to open in spring of 2025.