Fire chief hopes high school fire academy will boost dwindling number of firefighters
By Hannah Mackenzie
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SWANNANOA, North Carolina (WLOS) — North Carolina is in critical need of volunteer firefighters, according to the North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs (NCAFC).
The NCAFC launched a two-year campaign in an effort to boost the recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters.
A public service announcement stated in part, “Being part of the volunteer fire service is making Carolina stronger in every sense of the word. It’s about time you found your inner hero.”
Swannanoa Fire Chief Anthony Penland started his career as a volunteer firefighter.
“Right now, we respond to about 135-140 [calls] on average a month. When I first joined in 1990, we were going to 40,” Penland said.
Calls for service are on the rise, Penland said, but staff is diminishing. According to Penland, years ago, the Swannanoa Fire Department had 35 volunteer firefighters in addition to its paid full-time staff. Today, the department has just one volunteer firefighter. To bridge the personnel gaps, Penland said surrounding fire departments help each other out.
“When we have a structure fire, we’ll have seven people from Swannanoa that maybe respond, some of our off-duty folks will be there,” Penland said. “But then we’ll have departments from Black Mountain, Riceville and Reynolds personnel, as well.”
Penland, a 30-year veteran, hopes to inspire a new generation. Penland recently launched Buncombe County’s first fire academy for students. Penland teaches firefighting certification courses to students at Owen High School.
“Upon graduation, they’ll have three classes that they need to finish. They’ll need to finish fire control/rescue, hazmat and they have to take a traffic incident management class,” Penland said. “Once they finish those classes, they are certified firefighters in the state of North Carolina and can walk into any volunteer fire station and put in an application and start volunteering.”
Penland hopes the program serves as a pipeline to fill vacancies. He hopes to expand the program next year.
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