June 19 -- ANDERSON, IN -- Eighteen people are being added this month to the public safety departments in Anderson.
The Anderson Police Department hired nine new officers on June 5 bringing the total on the police force to 108.
Both the Police Department and Fire Department are budgeted for 110 in personnel.
The city announced Monday that the Fire Department will be hiring nine new firefighters with the swearing in ceremony set for June 25 at 4 p.m. during the regular Anderson Board of Public Safety meeting.
Fire Chief Dave Cravens said the new firefighters will bring the department up to 108 members. Among the new hires are the son of a current firefighter and one African-American male.
“We were at 104 or 105 for some time and recently dropped to under 100,” he said.
“The mayor has given approval to the hiring of one or two medics that have already completed their training by the end of the year,” Cravens said.
The new firefighters will be on probation for a year.
They will attend eight weeks of training at the Indiana District 6 Training Facility on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Training will include search and rescue, hazardous materials, vehicle extradition, EMS training and firefighting procedures and operations.
Once the training is completed the recruits will be certified as Firefighter 1 or Firefighter 2 and basic HAZMAT operations.
The new recruits are Shawn Branch, 21; Landin Henson, 31; Tyron Fedrick, 25; Mackenzie Hart, 26; Tanner Williams, 25; Aaron Oakley, 29, Cory Ritter, 25; Tyler Long, 27; and Cody Riddle, 28.
“We are pleased to welcome this exceptional group of young and diverse individuals who will be making a positive difference in our community,” Mayor Thomas Broderick Jr. said in a press release. “Chief Cravens and his staff did a great job in administrating the hiring process. As a result, we have been fortunate to have some exceptional candidates that I know will be excellent firefighters to serve our community.”
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