Woodacre, CA – Following 10 weeks of grueling training and challenges, 11 recruits graduated from the Marin County Regional Fire Academy on June 19 and are headed to new jobs protecting Marin communities.
The new firefighters were honored at a graduation ceremony at the Marin County Fire Department’s Woodacre station. Ten grads are joining the ranks of the Marin County Fire Department and one is going to the Southern Marin Fire District.
“We are extremely proud of the accomplishments of our newest firefighters,” said Marin County Fire Chief Jason Weber. “They are the next generation of leaders in the fire service.”
The new firefighters are, in alphabetical order: Nicholas Babin, James Barona, Drew Clason, Charles Ferris, Casey Fewell, William Krakauer, Steven Mackall, Nicholas Massucco, Jeoffrey Orman, Kyle Simmons and Kevin Stone (Clason is the one headed to Southern Marin Fire).
At the academy, held mostly at Southern Marin’s Station 9 on Reed Boulevard in unincorporated Strawberry, the recruits learned the fundamentals of firefighting and other practices routinely provided by the fire service such as advanced techniques in extinguishing structural and wildland fires, water rescues, rope rescues and providing emergency medical care. The firefighters trained at other sites in Marin, and one live burning exercise was conducted with assistance from the West Sacramento Fire Department.
Graham Groneman, Interim Training Officer for Marin County Fire, said much of the training was facilitated by on-duty personnel to help contain costs. In addition to Southern Marin and Marin County Fire, Mill Valley Fire Department personnel assisted with the training.
“The regional approach to training provides two key benefits: It promotes future collaboration on emergency incidents and provides a significant cost savings to the departments,” said Southern Marin Battalion Chief Matt Barnes.
This was the second regional fire academy held in Marin County. At the last academy in 2010, five graduates joined Southern Marin Fire and two went to Marin County Fire.