Contributed photo | www.albemarle.org
Contributed photo | www.albemarle.org
Albemarle County Fire Rescue (ACFR) is proud to introduce its newest class of firefighters. On Thursday, June 24, 2021, 14 career Firefighter/EMTs from ACFR's Recruit School 19 were sworn into service. During their 24 weeks of training, the Recruits were certified as Firefighters and Emergency Medical Technicians, and trained to respond to Hazardous Materials, Vehicle Rescue, and Technical Rescue incidents. In addition, they are now certified Car Seat Installation Technicians.
"ACFR personnel are highly trained and motivated to provide the highest quality service to the residents of Albemarle," said Chief Dan Eggleston. "As brand-new firefighters, this class is trained to serve as functional members of the ACFR team, and we warmly welcome them to the family.”
In 2020, ACFR began the implementation of an 18-month long staffing initiative to respond to the growing needs of our county while more efficiently utilizing personnel. To respond to those growing needs and fully implement the new staffing strategy, ACFR needed to expand its team of responders. Through a $1.9 million FEMA grant and the approved Fiscal Year 2021 Budget, the department has been hiring, training, and placing into service a total of 22 new positions over the span of 18 months and three recruit schools. This is the third of those recruit schools and will be placed into service in August 2021.
The new Probationary Firefighters began their assignments in ACFR Stations on June 26, 2021, to complete their field training.
Please welcome the newest class of firefighters:
Stuart Dalton
Jordan Divine
Joshua Euhus
William Filippelli
Michael Karr
Joshua King
David Marshall
Colin Mayry
Maxwell Morgan
Andre Miles-Redmond
Eric Opoku
Caleb Shetler
Marvin Tapia
Brett Turner