2016/17 Auxiliary Firefighter Recruit Class: From left: Cielo Richardson, Jared MacNeil, Dustin Luchak, Dario Komljenovic, Adam Guilderson, Tim Graham, Daniel Christie, Derek Brady, James Cruickshank. Missing from photo Jeremy Brown.
Campbell River’s fire department strives to be a leader in meeting the training standards set forth by the Province of BC for all its members, and on Oct. 5 the hard work and dedication of auxiliary firefighters was recognized at the annual recruit firefighter graduation and new recruit welcoming ceremony held at the Maritime Heritage Centre.
Deputy fire chief Thomas Doherty says “During the 2015/16 recruit training program, 14 recruit members underwent more than 4,800 hours of combined training to complete Fire Fighter Level II certification and accreditation. The department’s in-house fire service instructors contributed more than 2,500 hours of instruction and evaluation – a critical component to the success of the training program.”
Campbell River is one of the few fire departments in the province to deliver such a well-structured in-house program over a nine-month period.
In addition to the fire fighter programs, nine members successfully completed the requirement for Fire Officer Level 1 certification and accreditation, which is required for the supervision and direction of firefighting crews.
Before the end of the evening, the fire department welcomed 10 new auxiliary recruits into the training program. The new auxiliary firefighters completed the three-month recruitment process and began their training on Oct. 12.
2016/17 Auxiliary Recruit Firefighter Graduating Class: From left: Fire Chief Ian Baikie, John Vanderveen, James Kay, Kyle Welsh, Tyson Dumont, Ryan Bell, Reo Barton, Acting Mayor Michelle Babchuk.
