The Oakdale Area Volunteer Fire Department (OAVFD) is celebrating the graduation of Firefighters Ammon Hardy and Jacob Lemons, who recently completed their Firefighter I “Live Burn” training at The Alcoa Fire Training Facility.

Becoming a certified interior firefighter requires extensive dedication, combining rigorous classroom instruction with hands-on skill development and live fire simulations. This milestone training prepares firefighters to safely and effectively handle structural blazes and complex emergency scenarios.

With the addition of Hardy and Lemons, OAVFD now has 10 firefighters fully qualified to fight interior structure fires, significantly boosting the department’s emergency response capabilities and safety on the fireground for the local community.