DEPARTMENT of Fire and Emergency Medical Services senior drill instructor Robert Cruz said the 14th Fire Academy has high expectations for its fire cadets.
“We are looking for the best of the best candidates out there — we are looking for fit people and top-tier individuals eager to serve the community,” Cruz added.
“We need strong-willed and confident individuals willing to learn. We will build them down then we will build them up as individuals and as professionals.”
Training coordinator JJ Concepcion said DFEMS intends to fill 53 slots: 36 on Saipan, 10 on Rota, and seven on Tinian.
DFEMS, he added, received a total of 155 applications. “We are currently assessing all the prerequisites of the applicants,” he said.
“When they applied at the Office of Personnel Management, we received a list and we started calling them up to ask them to come to the fire department training center to pick up their form, and we also tell them what to expect,” Concepcion said.
“Once they complete the prerequisites, that’s the time we start the physical and agility tests. Right after that is the panel selection. When they’re selected they will go through another screening like drug testing and then the actual fire academy will start,” Concepcion added.
The fire academy will begin in mid-July and will run five to six months. The graduation ceremony will be held in December.
“All are required to have Covid 19 vaccination — that’s part of the prerequisites,” Concepcion said.
Cruz said the first phase of the physical test includes push-ups, sit-ups, a one-mile run, and a 10-course obstacle course which simulates 10 common skills that a firefighter needs to possess. These include gaining entry to a building, pulling hoses, lifting equipment and dragging rescued victims, just to name a few, Cruz said.
The cadets will be evaluated based on performance and character.
“Upon graduation, the fire cadets will undergo an evaluation phase, about 120 hours of hands-on activities in the field to see how they do under pressure especially in public. That’s why the fire academy tries to instill paramilitary-based discipline in cadets because of the mental and physical stress involved in 24-hour shifts. So we put them through mental and physical stress tests so that they can be ready for the real world,” Cruz added.
“We need the best emergency care out there so having the best of the best for the fire department is crucial and vital,” Fire Commissioner Dennis Mendiola said.
He said to prepare for the fire academy, the department is training its drill instructors.
“We are doing recertification for the drill instructors so they can push the cadets to meet our standards,” the commissioner added.
Juan Pua, assistant fire chief and office in charge for operations, said the department needs more personnel.
“Right now, we have stretched our manpower because of the response to the Covid-19 pandemic. We have assigned personnel to the Covid-19 task force so fortunately we are now selecting cadets for the fire academy. It will help address our manpower shortage,” Pua said.
Right now, he added, 13 DFEMS personnel are assigned to the Covid-19 task force.
“We alternate them every month. So we assign a group for a month, and then later they come back to operations, and assign the other personnel to the task force so that everyone gets to work for the task force.”
Pua said the department pays for its personnel’s regular hours while overtime is paid by CNMI Homeland Security.
On Tuesday, several fire department personnel underwent recertification at the department’s training center on Capital Hill.
Fire department training coordinator JJ Concepcion smiles for Variety. Also in photo, right background, is senior drill instructor Robert Cruz at the department’s training center on Capital Hill Tuesday
