VIDEO: Firetrucks in Pigeon Forge now have dash cameras, recording how crews respond to calls and helping them improve how they approach emergencies.
Fire Chief Tony Watson said crews and fire department leaders can watch videos to learn how to better fight fires. He said the cameras cost around $130,000 and they help expand the station's training opportunities.
"A picture's worth 1,000 words," he said. "I don't think there's a better thing that we can do than to be able to share some of the stuff that we're seeing out here on a daily basis."
He said the videos can help save the lives of firefighters, making sure they approach emergencies prepared with vital information.
"We can look at how we position our apparatus. We can look at the actions our firefighters do. You got to tell them, 'Okay, this is non-punitive, we're not gonna get you in trouble. Let's talk about how we can do this better,'" he said.