M’town Fire Academy Graduates 18 Newest Firefighters

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MIDDLETOWN – Volunteers from the area, who have completed the Middletown Fire Academy’s Firefighter 1 class, were presented with their helmets during a graduation ceremony on Tuesday, June 11 at the Thompson Middle School.
The probationary firefighters participated in 43 classroom and hands-on sessions to complete the mandatory 192 hours of training required by the state. At the end of the course, students must pass a series of practical skills tests and the written state examination in order to be certified as a N.J. Level 1 Firefighter.
Graduates from the Middle­town Fire Department were: John Baccellieri, William Hrehowsik and Andrew VanWagoner, Station 11; Megan Daneman, Station 10; Shannon Hueston and Brian Scott, Station 4; Robert Svenson Jr., Station 6; Ryan Winthers, Station 1; and Timothy Wolf, Station 7.
Graduates from the Fair Haven Fire Department were: Kevin Countryman and Brett Thompson.
Organized in 1928, the Middletown Township Fire Department is comprised of more than 500 volunteer members from 11 independent fire companies and five special units located within the 41-square-mile municipality.
The department also is a regional resource for special services such as hazardous materials response, confined space rescue, building collapse, breathing air unit and fire police and marine firefighting.
The department staffs and maintains an accredited fire training academy which provides state-of-the-art facilities and advanced curriculum that enable area firefighters to enhance their skills and to maintain various professional level certifications.
In 2012, the department answered 1,274 calls for service from the township’s 66,000 resident. The 100-percent volunteer unit is the largest fire department in Monmouth County.