Livingston Parish Students Training to be Firefighters
LIVINGSTON, La. – Four Livingston Parish students are participating in a unique firefighter training program this school year that will allow them to earn class credit and fire training certification that can help them pursue professional firefighting careers.
The local Louisiana High School Firefighter Training Program is sponsored by Livingston Parish Fire Protection District 4 (LPFPD4), the parish’s largest fire protection district, serving more than 70,000 residents across more than 225 square miles.
“This program gives our youth the chance to learn about local fire, rescue and emergency response organizations in a safe, controlled and educational manner,” said LPFPD4 Chief of Training/Safety Keesler Fly.
Those students enrolled in this year’s program include Tamara Fonseca from Walker High School, Kloie Wheat from Doyle High School, and Robby Vavasseur and Brayden Duncan from Denham Springs High School.
Fly leads the program with Chief Frank Dellucky, who has 40 years in fire service and numerous national certifications from La. FETA and the National Fire Academy. Dellucky also has a bachelor’s degree in Fire Administration. Fly has 18 years’ experience in fire service, beginning his career as a high school student in the LPFPD4’s junior firefighter program.
Fly said successful completion of the course provides students with training in Hazardous Materials Awareness, Hazardous Materials Operations, Firefighter 1 and Firefighter 2 instruction.
He noted that this is the fire protection district’s third year to sponsor the parish-wide youth training program. A pilot program was launched in the 2022-2023 school year with five high school seniors. Since then, the course has been accepted by the Louisiana Workforce Commission as a Carnegie credit course.
Prerequisites for student eligibility for the training program include certification in CPR/AED and basic first aid or certification as an Emergency Medical Responder (EMR).
“At the completion of high school, our students have meaningful skills and certifications that can allow them to enter the workforce immediately after graduating, as well as start them on an exciting and rewarding career path,” Fly added.