Danvers' Newest Firefighters on the Job After Graduating Mass. Fire Academy

Joseph Sholosmith and Jeffrey Snow are now on active duty as the Danvers Fire Department's newest members.

Snow graduated from the Mass. Firefighting Academy Dec. 21 while Sholosmith graduated on March 29. Both firefighters are now stationed at Fire Headquarters. Sholosmith is assigned to Group 2 while Snow is on Group 3.

That brings the department's ranks to 49 sworn personnel, says Fire Chief Kevin Farrell. Both men were appointed as town firefighters last year.

“This rigorous professional training provides our newest firefighters with the basic skills to perform their jobs effectively and safely,” said State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan in an announcement. The academy is a division of the Department of Fire Services and offers the program tuition-free.

The DFS explains that the intensive 12-week week program trains firefighters to not just deal with the flames, but handle many others situations, such as chemical and environmental emergencies or rescuing someone who's fallen into the ice or locked in a bathroom. And there's the equipment training to go with that.

The academy involves classroom instruction, physical fitness training, firefighter skills training and live fire practice. In order to graduate, students must demonstrate proficiency in life safety, search and rescue, ladder operations, water supply, pump operation,and fire attack, according to the DFS.