LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Anchorage-Middletown and St. Matthews fire departments are about to add 27 new firefighters to their ranks.
The current class of recruits are nearly finished with about six months of training and set to graduate in April. Twenty-five of the firefighters will be working for Anchorage-Middletown, and two will work in St. Matthews.
Students receive a mixture of classroom and real-world application as they learn what it takes to become a firefighter.
"We can sit in the classroom day in and day out, but until you actually physically get out here and you're doing the work, that's when it all clicks," said Jordan Yuodis, spokesman for Anchorage Middletown Fire and EMS. "It's a selfless job. Putting others before yourself is the No. 1 thing we're looking for."
The current class has 26 men and one woman, a ratio they'd like to see shift as they encourage more women to enter the profession.
"I don't like sitting behind a computer all day," Ellie Domato said. "I did that for a couple of years before signing up to do this, and it got old really, really fast. So I want to do something to keep me in good shape and help people. That's a big thing.”
On Monday, the recruits were in Jeffersontown practicing their overhaul techniques at several homes that were set for demolishment by Quantum Enterprises. They ripped through walls and ceilings with axes, spears and chainsaws simulating the methods used to find hot spots that can rekindle a fire.
"This is the meat and potatoes of the job, so to speak," Yuodis said. "Being able to get these recruits boots on the ground, tools in their hands, really seeing and feeling what the job is like is what it is all about."
The deadline to sign up for the next class is tomorrow at midnight. For more information, click here.
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