The 400-foot-tall Orlando Eye is the tallest Ferris wheel on the East Coast, and Orange County firefighters spent Wednesday climbing all the way to the top of the structure as they tried out for a special operations team.
Crews competed Wednesday to be on the team that will be prepared to rescue people from the observation wheel in an emergency.
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Out of the 70 people who tried out Wednesday, 40 will be selected for the team of elite firefighters. They will spent about three days at the Orlando Eye for training.
"To train on a structure like this is very unique," said Orange County Fire Rescue Battalion Chief David Hollenbach.
Strapped in only a harness, the firefighters climbed up a 400-foot-high latter that runs up the entire Orlando Eye, having to stop to reposition themselves as they made it up the wheel.
Orlando Eye staff provided the firefighters with new ropes and equipment to navigate the wheel.
"Our responsibility for Orange County Fire Rescue Special Operations is to identify the low-frequency and high-frequency events, train our people for them and continuously train them," Hollenbach said.
They also had to learn how to operate the ride and open the gondolas from the air to rescue passengers.
Merlin Entertainments, the same group that operates the Orlando Eye, also operates the London Eye, and brought in people from London to assist with Wednesday's training.
"They have many years of experience," said Robin Goodchild, general manager of the Orlando Eye. "Also having worked in London, myself, at the London Eye, we've never had any need to rescue anyone from the London Eye, and we don't for see that being an issue here. It's just a part of the preopening planning and testing phase."
Hollenbach said the firefighters' training would be finished by the time the Orlando Eye opens on Monday, May 4, as part of the new I-Drive 360 complex.