HELENA — The City of Helena is welcoming probationary firefighters as they begin an intensive training period designed to prepare them for the demands of emergency response and station operations.
The Helena Fire Department has welcomed three new members to the crew as they prepare to fill gaps as the retirement of several firefighters approaches in the coming months.
As with any probationary period, it’s about learning the new work environment.
Firefighter Peter McGovern shared, “How they go about their business, their workload and stuff like that, just the family feel to it definitely seemed like the change I needed to make.”
Some of the men have served in emergency services previously, and for others it’s a brand-new opportunity.
Right now, it's an intensive training phase with mentorship on station operations and emergency protocols.
“Training has been awesome, and it has been pretty diverse for the last week and a half or so, and today we did some horizontal standpipe and pulled some line off the engine,” firefighter Colton Davis said.
All of the new members say they’ve enjoyed their time so far.
Firefighter Matthew McGraw noted, “Everyone really wants to help out and really wants to make us the best to our own abilities, which is something I really admire and something I am looking forward to being a part of.”
This is just the start, with the goal of getting around 240 hours of hands-on entry-level training in the first year.
