In 2009, department personnel (career, reserve and volunteer) received 2,290 man hours of training.  The training involved various items dealing with fire suppression, emergency medical services, hazardous materials response, rope rescue, and ice rescue.  We had 1 reserve firefighter successfully complete paramedic classes and receive his license in 2009. In the course of our regularly scheduled training we have had the opportunity to train in acquired structures.  The training that we receive in these buildings is invaluable and we thank the citizens for thinking of us when the structures become available. 

In 2002 we lost Plant 1 as a training facility when it was sold by the City.  We utilized Plant 1 for Firefighter Survival, Self-Rescue, High Angle Rescue, Self Contained Breathing Apparatus Confidence Course, Confined Space Entry and Rescue, Rapid Intervention Team Training, Rope Training, Ventilation Training and Fire Overhaul Training.  The loss of Plant 1 has hindered our ability to maintain our critical skills training.  We have been allocated an area just east of Plant 2 on Johnson Road to develop into a training area.  Our hope is that planning will come to fruition in the not too distant future.

We continue to have personnel attend both on campus and off campus classes from the National Fire Academy.  We also have several members attend the Arson Conference, Nebraska Fire Marshal’s Office Training and various state and national conferences.  Currently, of the 7 Officers we have, 4 have received their Bachelor's Degree.  Several of our personnel currently have their Associate's degree and others are pursuing advanced degrees through various universities and colleges. 

Several years ago the department adopted a physical fitness program for the career staff.  As a result, Fremont is one of a handful of departments nationwide who utilize a Performance Based Task Test as a part of our training and as a part of our hiring process.  This test is designed around some of the more common fire and rescue evolutions the department encounters.

The Fremont Fire Department also maintains membership in various local emergency organizations, such as the Dodge County Fireman’s Association, the Tri-Mutual Aid

Firefighters Association, Dodge County Disaster Preparedness Committee, Juvenile Arson Task Force, the Critical Incident Stress Management team (CISM), and the Local Emergency Planning Committee.  

The Fremont Fire Department is a Nebraska Licensed Advanced Life Support Emergency Medical Service.  As well as serving the citizens of Fremont, we can be called upon, through our mutual aid agreements, to assist our neighboring departments in the treatment of a critically ill or injured patient.  We currently have 15 EMT-Paramedics, 5 EMT-Intermediates and 8 EMT-Basics on the department.  In 2008, we started using 12-Lead technology in the field to provide better care to our patients that are having a heart attack.

The Fremont Fire Department continues to provide personnel to support the Dodge County Water Rescue Team.  Currently there are 12 members of the department who are an active part of the team.  Eight of these members are certified as Public Safety Divers, Level One, and 4 have Open Water certification.  These divers are trained in water rescue and evidence and body recovery.    

The Fremont area has vast amounts of water available to the public for ice fishing and other winter sports.  As part of the Dodge County Water Rescue Team we identified the probability of being called to find someone that has fallen through the ice. 

Because of that, we undergo annual Ice Rescue Technician training.  This entails knowledge of various through-the-ice rescue techniques that can be utilized to assist someone that has broken through the ice and cannot remove themselves from the frigid water. 

We currently are listed by several of the businesses in Fremont as their Confined Space Rescue Response Agency.  This means we must be proficient in the use of specialized monitoring equipment, ropes, body harnesses, supplied air systems, air purifying respirators and be aware of any special hazards at each of the facilities.  This is not a designation to be taken lightly and it re-enforces the fact that we must maintain our critical skills training.  We have looked at various options to augment the training facilities currently available to us and have found a few to help fill the gap for now until we can develop our training facility in the future.