Chester and Upper Darby welcome new firefighters
On Monday, eight Delaware County fire recruits graduated from the Philadelphia Fire Academy. The new career firefighters, five from Chester and three from Upper Darby, spent the last 10 months training in multiple aspects of firefighting in a class with 56 cadets from the Philadelphia Fire Department.
On graduation day, the cadets sat outdoors near the multi-story fire tower where much of their training took place. Chairs were spaced several feet apart for social distancing purposes. There was no audience to congratulate them; friends and family had to watch the event online.
Deputy Chief Girten Allerton, director of the Fire Academy, thanked the recruits for choosing public service “in these extraordinary times and extraordinary circumstances.”
“Today, you have earned the honor and privilege of wearing the firefighter’s badge,” Allerton said. “But with that badge comes a heavy burden … you have pledged to respond when people are in the middle of the worst moments of their lives, and they are depending on you.”
“We consider this an absolutely fantastic opportunity for our department,” Michael Gove, chief of Upper Darby Township Fire Department, said about the training at the fire academy. “The Philadelphia Fire Academy allows us to immerse our cadets in the culture of the fire department, its histories, traditions, while at the same time improving their physical fitness to be ready for the rigors of the job.”
Gove pointed out that the fire department is a paramilitary organization and the lifestyle can be a change from civilization life and the fire academy prepares them to do that. Upon graduation, the cadets earned nationally recognized certifications in Firefighter 1, Firefighter 2 and Hazardous Materials Operations, and Life Safety Education, as well as being certified as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs).
Both departments have been sending their recruits to the Philadelphia Academy for the past 25 years.
“The intense physical and mental training prepares them for the rigorous tasks they will face as firefighters. It took a little longer because of COVID-19. It was a long battle for those young guys but they did a heck of a job,” said Chester Fire Commissioner William C. Rigby, who pointed out that one of his recruits, Cadet Emanuel Delva, was awarded second place for the physical fitness award and was chosen by the academy instructors to receive the Fellowship Award.
In addition to Delva, the other Chester recruits are Jamal Anding, Jamiel Church, Andre Grant and Ronald Thompson; they are all city residents. The Upper Darby recruits are Michael Melazzo, William Addis and Michael Kopp. One lives in the township now the other two must move there after their probationary period.
The Upper Darby recruits were officially sworn in on Tuesday morning in a socially distant ceremony at Primos Secane Westbrook Park Fire Station No. 5 and by Wednesday they reported to work. They join 57 career and 75 volunteer firefighters in the township.
“They come out with a pretty impressive folder of certificates and education,” Gove said. “This is a very rigorous course of training and it is extremely comprehensive. We are very proud of all the guys who we have put through, all the ones we have in and all the ones we hope to hire in the future.”
In addition to the new recruits, firefighter Emil D’Alesio, a 10-year veteran, was sworn in as captain.
Recruits are chosen from a competitive Civil Service process.
While there is some diversity in the volunteer staff at Upper Darby, Gove agreed there is a lack of diversity in the career ranks which are now all white. The next class of four recruits from Upper Darby are presently training at the academy while a third group, with a more diverse makeup is scheduled to begin in October. The make-up of the earlier classes was determined by the Civil Service Commission from previous administrations.
The recruiting test consists of a written test, a physical agility test and an oral interview. Based on the scores they are ranked and hired off of that list.
“Our goal is to eventually have a fire department that is more representative of the community,” Gove said. “That is a significant goal that the mayor has laid out for us.”
The Chester recruits will be sworn in at the City Council meeting next Wednesday, 10 a.m. at City Hall. They will be spending two weeks with Battalion Chief John-Paul Shirley, the bureau’s training officer, and being oriented to the Chester Bureau of
Fire. Upon completion of orientation, they will each be assigned to one of four platoons where they will join their 53 fellow firefighters in serving the residents of the City of Chester. Rigby said they have five firefighters retiring so the new recruits would be a big help.
“We received numerous compliments about all five of the Chester Fire Cadets from many of the academy staff,” said Rigby. “It was remarked that the Philadelphia Fire Department wanted to ‘keep’ the Chester cadets.”