© 2026. The Trustees of Indiana University
Copyright Complaints
1229 East Seventh Street, Bloomington, Indiana 47405
News, Arts and Culture from WFIU Public Radio and WTIU Public Television
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Bloomington Fire Department Launches New Firefighting Tech

Bloomington Fire Department has been serving the community for 116 years, but is now getting equipped with something brand new.

BFD has begun beta testing for "Project Innovation," a collaborative initiative between Bloomington Fire Department, Indiana University and software developers.

The project is comprised of technology where critical information about an emergency, such as building information, traffic patterns, and location, is updated live to monitors inside the station and in the firetruck.

This allows firefighters to prepare for potentially dangerous situations before they even arrive on the scene.

"Being able to deliver timely, and just really efficient emergency services is really important to our people," says BFD Deputy Chief Jayme Washel. "I think that this is just going to enhance that ability,"

Collaboration between all parties will continue over the next few months and BFD hopes everything to be officially up and running by the end of the year.