Honolulu firefighters are getting a rare chance to train inside real, soon-to-be-demolished apartment buildings, which is good news for public safety since it sharpens skills that save lives in emergencies.

• Crews are using chainsaws and heavy tools to practice breaking through walls, moving through tight spaces, deploying hoses, and running search-and-rescue drills inside actual Moiliili apartment units.
• Normally firefighters only get this kind of hands-on experience during real emergencies, so training in real buildings beforehand makes them safer and better prepared.
• The property owner bought the complexes around 2009 and is now relocating the remaining tenants before tearing the aging buildings down.
• Fire crews plan to keep training there as much as possible before demolition begins, expected later this year.

Outlook: Firefighters will keep using the buildings for live drills until demolition starts near the end of the year, with no finalized plans yet for what replaces the site.