Firefighters search rubble in mock building collapse (PHOTOS)

Firefighters from nine other departments joined the training Monday. Watch video

NEWARK -- If a building collapses in the greater Newark area, firefighters will be prepared.

A class of 33 Newark firefighters Monday began the second of two 40-hour structural collapse training classes held in the city. PSE&G lent the department a crane to use during the training session, which officials said taught new firefighters about crane rescues during building collapses.

Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said the training ensured that the firefighters "can work effectively during search and recovery efforts that require a crane to remove rubble or debris involving collapsed buildings and other structures."

Several other nearby departments sent officers to the class, which was run as part of the Urban Area Security Initiative, a Homeland Security grant program. Officers from the Hoboken, Middlesex County, Bayonne, Jersey City, Elizabeth, North Hudson Regional, Millburn, Paterson and Hackensack departments all joined in the training, held at a Newark fire headquarters on Orange Street.

"The partnership between the Newark Fire Division, UASI and PSE&G creates an exceptional training opportunity for the greater region," Newark Fire Chief Rufus Jackson said in a release about the event.

"When agencies come together like this, it allows us to train for proficiency, under realistic conditions so that we can reduce the likelihood of injury to victims and to the brave men and women performing rescues."