Next generation of firefighters training in South Lake Tahoe

Some have jobs. Some have families. Some are recent high school graduates. Some are retired military. Some are college graduates. They are all future firefighters.

One month into the new school year, 33 men and women are part of the tenth class of firefighters being trained at the Lake Tahoe Community College's program, the Lake Tahoe Basin Fire Academy. This year's class started with 36 students, but some find out early on how physically demanding the program is and they find it isn't for them.

"This is an extremely strong class," said Leona Allen, one of two Fire Academy Coordinators.

On October 23, the students were out at the Lake Valley Fire Station in Meyers, using their training facility to go through several stations that mimic what firefighters face when they enter a burning building. They went through a "bail out drill" where they had to get out of a top floor opening as if the building was on fire. Only difference, the trainees use a harness at this point. They crawled through small spaces with electrical wires, under floors and through holes in drywall.

They didn't try the "Habit Trail" as Allen calls it. That trailer is full of cages and tubes, just like a home for hamsters. At a future date, the trailer will be filled with smoke and the students will go through the roof and th series of tubes before they can get out.

Since the students cannot carry a phone or camera with them, Allen takes photos throughout the course and gives all graduates a thumbdrive showing their experiences.

Students in this program get 200 more hours of hands-on training than required by the State of California, making it easy for graduates to be hired and transition into the Firefighter 1 job class.

"The LTCC nine-month course is the only one in the state that has an extended format," said Allen. Other programs in the state are just 18 weeks long and don't get all of the training they do in the South Lake Tahoe program. Students get a lot more "outside of the classroom" education such as ice rescue training and swift water rescue, both the only classes of their kind in the whole state.

The LTCC program is accredited through the California State Fire Marshal's Office and the State Board of Fire Services.

With most classes only held on Saturdays and Mondays, the students are able to have jobs outside of school. Because of this, Allen says they have the lowest attrition rates in the state since participants have time to study as well as supporting themselves, and in some cases, their families.

Last year, 13 of the 28 graduates were hired before graduation, with two of them missing the traditional ceremony because they were sent to fight the Washington Fire near Markleville. On the same night of graduation, their Fire Captain held a graduation for them in camp.

"We have a really good hire rate," said Allen. "I keep track of all of them."

She said that all fire agencies in the basin look to their graduates to fill open positions. They don't only hire, but they also worked collaboratively with the Academy and lend their skills to the future firefighters. All of the local Fire Chiefs participate in the program by interviewing the students prior to graduation to give them the experience of handling a job interview. "They've even hired people on the spot as a result of that exercise," said Allen.

There are 13 instructors and 25 instructional aides used by the Academy, many of whom graduated from the LTCC program. They give the students experience on all the tools and skills they'll need when out in the work force.

The class goes through a monthly skill's assessment to check on what they've learned and retained. During the 23rd's outside class, Captain Chuck Malone of Lake Valley Fire, who has been teaching at the Academy since the first year in 2006, led the group through a drill on getting their self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBA) on in under two minutes. Malone graduated from South Tahoe High in 1994.

Another STHS graduate is among the Class of 2016 hopefuls. Class Commander Marty Rider (STHS '05) is a former Navy Corpsman. He said that while in the military he learned to protect his community, a role he is looking forward to as a fireman.

Justin Keys, an engineer with the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department, was on hand with the class Friday, along with Firefighter/Paramedic Trent Renner.

South Tahoe High Senior Ryan Brown was also on the scene for his first day of learning about firefighting for his Senior Project.

Allen expects the trend to continue of local students joining future Fire Academy classes.

Even though the program is becoming more culturally diverse, Allen is trying to recruit more women. "I want to be a positive roll model for girls," she said. "We struggle with attracting them into the program."