ORANGE — Montague resident Nino Rodrigues, who joined the Orange Fire Department in February, was among 25 firefighters who graduated from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy’s Career Recruit Firefighting Training Program at the Springfield campus in September.
Through the program, students learn the basic skills they need to respond to fires, to contain them and to control them, according to a press release from the state Department of Fire Services, which offers the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy tuition-free.
They also receive training in public fire education, hazardous material incident mitigation, flammable liquids, stress management, confined space rescue techniques and rappelling. The program involves a mix of classroom instruction, physical fitness training, firefighter skills training and live practice.
“This rigorous professional training provides our newest firefighters with the basic skills to perform their jobs effectively and safely,” State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey said of the academy.
The 25 graduates representing 14 fire departments were honored during a ceremony on Sept. 16, featuring speaker Lt. Thomas Kane, a 14-year veteran of the West Springfield Fire Department.