PTC's emergency driving simulator is a ‘great tool’ for safely training law enforcement officers, firefighters and other first responders

Responding to a reported shooting at a hospital, Greenwood County Sheriff Dennis Kelly switched on the siren and accelerated. Avoiding a bus, a bicyclist, a pedestrian and a fire truck, he arrived at the scene just over 2 minutes later.

“I am sweating,” Kelly said.

The surge of adrenaline that he felt didn’t come on actual roads. Instead, Kelly was seated in an emergency-driving simulator at the Workforce Innovation Division building on the Piedmont Technical College (PTC) Greenwood campus. 

Kelly joined more than a dozen law enforcement officers, firefighters and other first-responders in trying out the simulator on a Friday morning last month.

“It’s pretty realistic,” said Saluda County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Quinton Anderson after taking his turn behind the wheel in the simulator.

Workforce Innovation training coordinator Vickie Baldwin said the simulator allows drivers to experience daytime or nighttime conditions, various types of weather and different terrains. It also can be customized for an array of emergency scenarios.

“They can be in rain, ice or snow,” Baldwin said. “They can be in the mountains. They can be in a city.”

Best of all, crashes in the simulator do not cause any injuries or property damage. 

Tyler Hunter of the Abbeville County Sheriff’s Office was impressed with the simulator.

“I really liked it,” he said. “It took a little getting used to at first, but I think it would be a great tool. I am going to try to get some of our guys over here to set up some training.”

Workforce Innovation is offering a four-hour Emergency Driver Skills class on five separate Fridays in May and June. The cost of the course is $200, but participants may be eligible for a South Carolina Workforce Industry Scholarship (SC WINS). 

Workforce Innovation also offers several CDL, Defensive Driving, Motorcycle Safety and Driver Training Courses.

For more information visit https://www.ptc.edu/continuing-ed or call 864-941-8400.