Essex County Fire and Rescue Service welcomes new firefighters at virtual celebration

Five new wholetime firefighters have been honoured at a virtual passing out ceremony attended by Essex County Fire and Rescue Service’s Chief Fire Officer/Chief Executive Jo Turton and Deputy Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Jane Gardne

Beginning their training in May this year, the recruits began 14 weeks of intensive training like no other. Juggling the struggles and restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic, alongside their training at facilities across the county, they have learned the practical and technical skills needed to meet the demands of a modern day firefighter.

During today’s ceremony the new firefighters performed drills for friends and family, who were watching online, before being presented with certificates to mark the completion of their training course.

Chief Fire Officer/Chief Executive Jo Turton said: ‘Today we celebrated our very first virtual pass out and our new recruits’ friends and family joined us online for this special occasion. When our firefighters applied for the role over a year ago they had no idea they would be joining our Service in the middle of a global pandemic.

“But of course, one of the many key skills our firefighters have is the ability to adapt during difficult situations and the determination to focus on their goal of making Essex a safe place to live, work and travel.

The firefighters will now be assigned to wholetime stations across the county to begin the next step in their career, where they will also complete an apprenticeship alongside their continued firefighter training.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service is currently recruiting both wholetime and on-call firefighters. To find out more information and apply visit join.essex-fire.gov.uk