The California Highway Patrol has closed its academy because of the coronavirus pandemic, but Cal Fire says its training academy in Ione is staying open for classes for its recruits.
“These are essential classes that we need to continue with,” Cal Fire spokesman Scott McLean said. “We are very cognizant of the situation and we will constantly re-evaluate the situation as conditions change.”
But with the state having endured years of devastating wildfires, Cal Fire says classes and training for recruits remains necessary, although officials are increasing the distance between recruits in classrooms and in training.
Some other classes, such as training sessions for public information officers, are being scrapped for now because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
But training for firefighters is continuing.
“It’s something we don’t treat lightly,” McLean said. “We’re going to continue to review this on a regular basis and if something’s not working out we’re going to stop it.”