A new program designed to help former offenders pursue a career in firefighting made its first deployment over the weekend to help battle the Saddleridge Fire in the San Fernando Valley.
The Ventura Training Center Firefighter Training and Reentry Program began teaching its first class of participants in October 2018, according to the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which developed the project with Calfire and the California Conservation Corps.
The 18-month program in Camarillo provides advanced training in firefighting to those previously housed in fire camps operated by Calfire and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The first cohort is expected to complete training in April 2020, but two participants have already left to accept full-time positions by Calfire, according to CDCR.