Training requirements for Volunteers

[Dickey]

Here in Wisconsin, the state requires all personnel that are on scene acting as a firefigter must complete Entry Level part I&II(total of 80 hours of training) and must be supervised by a State Certified Firefighter I when they are operating inside a structure. To obtain Certified Firefighter I you must complete another 30 hours training which includes Haz-Mat Awareness and fire prevention. Certified Firefighter II requires another 40 hours training in Haz-Mat, fire prevention and education, and building construction. To maintain certification the state says you must have continuing education each year but does not specify how many hours. Most full-time departments in the state require minimum of Level I, most of them Level II. My dept. requires Level I certification as well.

Stay safe,

Lt. Jason Knecht
Altoona Fire Rescue
Altoona, WI

[LtStick]

I don't know if PA has a requires any one to take a course to be a firefighter but, my Department prefers that any one who wants to be an active firefighter take the 88 Esentails of Firefighting Module one course within a year of joining. This is provided that one of the deapartments in the area are having the course. We do not let non trained members do interior operations or other things of that nature.
I know of at least one Department that requires several courses and aditional in house training to fight fire.

[Ten8_Ten19]

Regarding Maine training requirements...

They are set out in State statute 26 MRSA, Chapter 28, Section 2102.

Most, if not all, departments require IFSTA Modules 1 - 5 be completed before you can do interior firefighting. I believe this is 80 hours of training.

[KS.KE,EMT/FIRE/RESC]

In KS. Within the last few years the standard has improved for vol. and part time dept's now within Thirty-six months you must complete at least NFPA 1001 FF I and Hazmat Awareness for liability reasons, Before 1998 you could get grandfathered in if you had essentals, not any more, all personell in ks that are on a FF service need these requirements. Our Dept then trains new FF I thru regional schools to prepare them for interior jobs, then we train on a monthly basis to keep skills up and different FF to work in cooperation with each other. Wildland fires are fought with verying techniques depending on the lay out and resorces avalable. We haven't found any college or university program that meets our specific needs on these fires. Since over 80% of our calls are just that field fires, we train all FF our tactics to keep every one of the same sheet of music, and when it works it's beautiful!

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M. Cory Myers
EMT-I/FF/RESC;TO

it's better to load N go then stay N play

[postal79]

like the others from jersey said you need (in jersey) FF1 hazmat awareness and ops.. in jersey FF1 is 130hrs i do believe.. when i went four years ago it was 3 nights a week 3 hours a night for 3 months
also IMS level one

[First In]

Texas requires 167 hours to hold a basic volunteer certification. However, this is usually how it goes:
Firefighter: Sit there on that truck and do what he tells you
Driver/Operator: Experience in driving dump truck, school bus, big rig, or anything larger than a half-ton pickup
Officer: Drink beer with so-and-so and host a couple of WWF pay-per-view parties, anything higher than a high-school education or CPR card seems to be a hindrance
Chief: Whoever has the least amount of people angry at them on the election night

Yes, there is a volunteer certification program by SFFMA, but unfortunately it takes time, dedication, and a little initiative. I'm striving to get my department to recognize these standards and implement them before letting someone fight fire, drive, or (even worse) be an officer. As long as everything is done on basis of popularity rather than qualifications, don't look for me to be too successful. I know this may sound harsh, but it is true in my area. Thanks!

[CaptainCarp]

My Dept. requires that all new recruits go to the county academy that consist of to nights a week for three hours and saturdays four 8 hours, this goes on for 2 months. During this academy FF recieve basic FF skills, haz-mat, EVAP, asbestos awarness, CPR, first aid. At the end of the academy they can test for FF1. This way when we hire FF it could take our dept. several months to train them were at the academy they come back to us trained.

[FFTrainer]

For you NJ guys out there, you forgot Bloodborne Pathogens. Take a look at the following when you get a chance.
http://www.state.nj.us/dca/dfs/memocert.htm

[jizumper-5]

Here are our requirements(these are the most stringent I have seen for a voly co. in the state) I have to agree with LtStick, PA doesn't actually "require" anything):

To become an Active Firefighter in the Alpha Fire Company, each member needs to go through a probationary period ranging from 1 year to 18 months......They then must complete their probationary training requirements consisting of First Aid and CPR, NFPA Hazardous Materials Operations (24 hrs), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Essentials of Firefighting Module (88 hrs), State Certified Structure Burn Session (16hrs) and Firefighter One Certification.

Along with the outside training requirements and certs, each probationary member needs to complete the Alpha Fire Company Pre- Emergency Response Training, (PERT). There are three Company PERTs that each probationary member needs to complete. Each PERT program is broken down into modules, Engine Company (9 modules), Rescue Company (15 modules), and Truck Company (11). Once all of these course are completed the member can work in any of these company jobs as directed by the line officers.


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Keep Safe!

[dvfd48r6]

Right now NH doesn't seem to strictly enforce and requirements. The Buzz is that Hazmat and first aid/CPR will soon be minimum. Also a possibility of FF1 being required has been discussed. Some guys on the department had taken a vollie oriented course a few years ago, but I took FF1, the vollie course apparently no longer exists

[Eng522ine]

All I can say after reading some of these posts is....WOW. I find it bordering on insane that in this day and age that there are probies going into fires that haven't even completed FF1. As you can see I'm from NJ, and by the looks of it we have some of the most stringent requirements and yet we still have firefighter fatalities here. Volunteers or not, its bordering on negligent homicide giving an 18 year old kid a nozzle because he's had his 36 hour class.

[HR314]

Mississippi does not require any training at all but offers a Certfied Volunteer Firefighter course. My volounteer department requires a 1001 level 1 certification within the first year. Almost everyone within the department has continued on to get their level 2. I hope within the future Mississippi will require certification and training hours.

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Will Roberts
Firefighter II/ EMT-B
Heucks Retreat Fire Department
Brookhaven, MS

[buzzmedic]

Glad to see a post from Texas. Being a Vol for 8 years and a career FF for the past 6 years, I have a little prospective. The SFFMA does have a certification program but does not require a minimum before you can fight fire. Nor does it require yearly CEU's. This is left up to the individual departments to determine minimum training requirements. This a dangerous thing because in Texas, the good-ol-boy system is alive and well. And with Texas being a big state comparatively, we also have many Vol departments. The Vols have resisted efforts to stadardize training because we still have older men who have served for 25-30 years. Remember, fire doesn't descriminate.
ff/emt-p Buzz

[ffWeber]

I dont know how it is in the state of MD as a whole, but i do know that in Harford County, it is required that you successfully complete: FFI, thru MFRI-Univ. MD College Park, Hazardous Materials Operations, and CPR. To add to that, I personally think all firefighters should have some form of medical training. Although I would settle for CPR as a minimum, I think at least First Responder if not EMT-B should be required...I know a lot of firefighters around here have no interest in riding the ambulance, and a lot of departments require you to ride the ambo if u have the training(and are available, etc); regardless, i think u should have some form of medical training: for yourself, other firefighters, and the public.

ffWeber

[firecadetak]

In my dept., you are supposed to get your Firefighter I Ceritification within a year of joining. Is the only main requirement and it isn't really enforced.