The Yakima Fire Department (YFD) and Kittitas Valley Fire and Rescue (KVFR) have partnered to form the Central Washington Fire Training Academy (CWFTA).
Through CWFTA, firefighters from both agencies learn the essentials of firefighting, wildland firefighting, as well as responding to incidents involving medical issues and hazardous materials.
The CWFTA’s most recent live fire training was Wednesday, March 22nd, on Road 6 just south of Ellensburg.
CWFTA began in January of this year due to the need for training recruits in a timely manner because of vacancies, the cost of surrounding academies and benefit of YFD and KVFR teaching their own recruits.
“This a great benefit to both agencies. YFD and KVFR have a long-standing partnership in working together and this will greatly increase the efficiency on an emergency scene as we both work and train the same way,” said YFD Chief Aaron Markham. “The interpersonal relationships are invaluable to each other. Both agencies respond to each other’s jurisdictions to assist on large incidents several times a year.”
Two additional CWFTA training sessions are scheduled for May and September of this year, bringing the total number of new firefighters trained for both agencies up to possibly 30 or more by the end of 2023.
CWFTA training classes are held at the YFD training center, while live fire training is conducted in KVFR’s coverage area.
“CWFTA Instructors are highly qualified and trained personnel from YFD and KVFR, and it showed last week in the recruits’ performance on a live burn training exercise,” said YFD Deputy Chief D.J. Goldsmith. “It is great to see the recruits’ growth and working together. We hope to continue this partnership for many years to come and welcome other departments to join CWFTA.”
Click https://yakimafire.com/ for more about YFD or call 509-575-6060.
Click Kittitas Valley Fire and Rescue (kvfr.org) for more about KVFR.
