THUNDER BAY - When Adam Moreira stood in front of family, friends, and fellow recruits, he took a moment to assess the room.
Like every good firefighter, it’s important to understand a situation before jumping into it, and while Moreira and his fellow recruits have trained long and hard for what lies ahead, the situation still has not sunk in quite just yet.
“I’m sure once we all start on the truck and that first call comes in, that’s when it will really sink in,” Moreira said. “But right now, I think we’re all in a bit of a shock.”
Moreira was one of seven new recruits welcomed into the Thunder Bay Fire Service during a ceremony on Saturday at the Training Centre.
The recruits began training six months ago and though they have entered service as professional firefighters, they will remain on probation for one year as they team up with more seasoned service members on the job.
A graduate of Lakehead University with a degree in biology and master's in ecology, Moreira said he became interested in firefighting after hearing about his brother's experiences in the training.
"I really like the idea of giving back to my community and this is a great way to do it," he said. "It made sense to me."
The training took place over the last six months and just as rigorous as Moreira's brother told him it would be, with a lot of material being covered over a short period of time.
“There are a lot of skills you have to get down, there is a lot of testing, both practical and written,” he said. “It’s a great experience for sure.”
Throughout those six months, even though it was a challenge, both physically and mentally, Moreira said he and his fellow recruits never once thought about quitting.
“There were a couple of times when we were doing morning workouts and skills drills when I thought this was really tough,” he said. “I’m not 25 anymore. But that was really early in training. Ever since then there has been no looking back. Every day has been better than the last one. In my mind, or any of the other recruits minds, there was never any notion of quitting or giving up.”
Thunder Bay Fire Rescue chief, John Hay, said in his experience, the graduation ceremony for new recruits is one of the best events within the fire service.
“It shows that we are looking for the best we can get for our firefighters,” he said. “These guys have been through a lot to get to the graduation, but they’ve gone through a lot to get to the point where they are accepted or offered jobs as firefighters.”
According to Hay, becoming a firefighter is not simply signing up and waiting for a call. It takes a lot of training, a lot of skill, and a lot of drive.
“You have to recognize that there is a lot of work to get to be a fire fighter,” he said.
During the ceremony, several members were also recognized for their years of service of 20 or more years. Hay said having current members honoured alongside the new recruits offers a unique perspective for those just entering the service.
“To have them both together with our recruit class it tells the recruits that it is something that is going to be a good thing in my career,” he said. “We have very little attrition before retirement. We are very fortunate that our staff are so dedicated. They don’t just put in 20 years of time, they put in 20 years of service.”
The new recruits will be entering service in the coming days and Hay said every recruit needs to be prepared, because as they will soon learn, there is just no telling what each day will bring.
“They may be saving a life on the first morning,” he said. “We’ve had many opportunities where the first day of a new recruit’s career they’ve got a significant call, a car accident, or a structural fire, and it has happened that a recruit has to push the button on the defibrillator on a call.”
