Volunteer firefighters’ training activities usually go unnoticed, but in reality their training goes on practically nonstop every time they enter their fire station, even for routine chores.

That is why when they were looking virtually in the eye an inferno like they encountered last Monday at the U.S. Lumber Distribution Center in Claysburg, they knew immediately what they needed to do to launch their battle against the flames and, while the fight was being waged, protect themselves and their firefighting comrades from injury or worse.

All 20-plus fire departments called to battle the four-alarm blaze were mentally and physically equipped to make correct assumptions and decisions, even though, from the get-go, it appeared — and, in fact, was — hopeless in terms of actually saving what was ablaze.

The largely collapsed, blackened “corpse” remaining from the large, bustling supplier of lumber products to major stores in the area is not the remnant of a battle lost due to inadequate planning and training.

It is instead testimony to the head start and ferocity with which firefighters had to deal from the moment they arrived at the scene.

It is hard to envision that any other group of firefighting units could have done better, all considered. Not only did the area firefighters in question attack the blaze, they were able to save some product, vehicles and nearby structures.

Anyone driving by the site in the days ahead and seeing what remains of the business might express awe that saving anything was possible, considering the winds that hampered firefighting operations, the fire’s “fuel” and the dense smoke that prevented firefighters from seeing the enemy flames they were trying to extinguish.

Even while initial efforts were underway to confirm the cause of the fire, the task of greater, more immediate importance was how to get the distribution center back in operation as quickly as possible.

Removal of the unsalvageable parts of the distribution center, while trying to save what is salvageable, will be a challenging task, because of the center’s layout, tight quarters and the close proximity of other businesses, as well as homes.

Ditto the general cleanup that will be necessary before rebuilding becomes possible, as well as addressing any environmental issues, should some surface.

But the situation is not all doom and gloom; a big window of hope and assistance remains open and accessible.

There is the business and industrial expertise of the ABCD Corp., which strives to attract new enterprises, help existing enterprises achieve new goals or to expand, or help businesses and industries overcome setbacks.

The county has a hard-working group of representatives in Harrisburg’s legislative chambers who no doubt will be seeking out any help that the state can provide.

“We’re hoping to help jump-start things really quickly in the coming weeks,” said ABCD President and CEO Stephen McKnight, even before all of the smoke from the fire had drifted from the site.

Amid the anticipated site cleanup and because of the size of the blaze, fire departments will conduct ongoing evaluations and discussions of their individual performance, while businesses that came forward to help in any way that they could will evaluate their responses as well.

As last Wednesday’s front-page fire coverage rightly pointed out, this terrible fire brought out the best of what Blair and surrounding counties are about. Meanwhile, the value of good training can never be overstated.