Union County Board of Commissioners Chairperson Alexander Mirabella and Union County Commissioner Sergio Granados joined with county and local fire and public safety leaders and 44 firefighter recruits from Hillside, Linden, Rahway and Union on Wednesday, Feb. 3, at the opening of Union County’s new Fire/EMS Training Academy in Linden. The training center has opened inside the building that formerly housed Union County’s Juvenile Detention Center.
UNION COUNTY, NJ — The Union County Board of County Commissioners cut the ribbon on Wednesday, Feb. 3, for the new Union County Fire/EMS Training Academy. The new facility provides classroom space for both professional and volunteer firefighters in training, as well as continuing education for firefighters and EMTs who are currently serving.
Forty-four firefighters from Hillside, Linden, Rahway and Union Township have commenced classroom instruction at the new Fire Academy, formerly the site of the Union County Juvenile Detention Center, located at 1075 Edward St., Linden.
“We had a building that was available for repurposing and this works out well for the county, as well as for local fire departments,” said Board of Commissioners Chairperson Alexander Mirabella. “We are proud to be able to offer a conveniently located facility for Union County’s firefighters and EMTs to work toward the completion of their training.”
Future plans include the development of a course catalog with public safety classes such as CPR training available to members of the general public.
“I am extremely excited about this new academy; It has been a long time coming. This gives our firefighters from all the different municipalities the ability to start their careers by training together while building relationships. They will be seeing each other on the various fire grounds throughout their careers,” said Michael Scanio, chief of the Union Fire Department and president of the Union County Chiefs Association.
Currently, the county has an existing facility located on Lower Road in Linden that will continue to provide a realistic environment for conducting live burn training for both career and volunteer firefighters.
The Fire Training Academy is operated by the Union County Department of Public Safety. For more information, visit ucnj.org/public-safety.