Portland Fire and Rescue will be using lateral entry to fill its ranks for the first time in the departments 139-year history.
Portland Fire and Rescue will be using lateral entry to fill its ranks for the first time in the departments 139-year history.
For the first time in the history of Portland Fire and Rescue, lateral entry firefighters will be hired to fill the current staffing shortage.
Hiring freezes before 2011, through 2014 and again in 2019 have kept staffing levels below 2010 levels, Fire and Rescue Lt. Elizabeth Thompson told KGW8.
In 2010 the department had 692 firefighters, today the number is closer to 650.
The department hopes that by hiring experienced firefighters, they can shorten the academy and get firefighters on the street ahead of the typical time frame the current hiring process requires.
The department is looking to add 16 to 20 firefighters who would start the academy in April and could start working by the end of summer.
