Prospective firefighters for the state Department of Natural Resources must complete a 3-mile course in 45 minutes – while wearing a 45-pound pack.
But there’s good news for those who passed last year’s test: They don’t have to do it again.
Because of social distancing guidelines due to COVID-19, only new recruits must take the test this year.
“Generally in a normal year, everyone – be it a first-year firefighter or if you’ve been with the DNR for 10 years – everyone has to take the pack test,” said Bobby LaPoint, a Wenatchee-region fire prevention technician. “In a regular year you’ll see eight to 10 people out there taking the pack test at a time. This year with the new requirements, we don’t have as many people to test, so we can spread them out further.”
A pack test Monday at the Wenatchee High School track saw only two participants. Four people took the test last month, LaPoint said, and the next group later this month or next will probably be in the same range.