For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-428-3299
Email: ben@jgpr.net

Three Whitman Firefighters Graduate from State Firefighting Academy

WHITMAN– Chief Timothy J. Grenno is pleased to announce that three Whitman firefighters have graduated from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy this week.

Firefighters, Jerry Thompson and Russell Lucas, both of Hanson, and Whitman native Zachary Baldwin all graduated from the academy after having previously been hired by the department in October as paramedics. The addition of Thompson, Lucas and Hanson was the first expansion of the Whitman Fire Department’s staff in more than 50 years, as a result of the community’s approval of a Proposition 2 1/2 override at Town Meeting last year.

Their graduation marks the 260th class of the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy’s 50-day Career Recruit Firefighter Training Program. 35 students from 24 fire departments graduated during a ceremony Monday, Jan. 22 at the Department of Fire Services headquarters in Stow.

“We’re proud of these gentlemen and the commitment they’ve shown to the department and the community,” Chief Grenno said. “We want to congratulate them on their graduation and we look forward to seeing all of the great contributions they will make to the department in the future.”

Through a mix of classroom instruction, physical fitness training and live firefighting practice, students of the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy learn how to handle a wide variety of situations in the intensive 10-week course.

Taught by certified fire instructors who are also experienced firefighters, students are taught how to respond to fires and contain and control them, how to handle chemical and environmental emergencies, various rescue techniques, equipment handling, stress management and more.

To learn more about the Fire Academy and how to enroll, visit The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security Department of Fire Services website.

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