NY Recruits, Instructors Pulled from Training after Incident

Some instructors and New York fire departments won't continue with a training program at the state's fire academy after a firefighter suffered a medical emergency during one of the exercises last week.

Watertown firefighter Peyton Morse, 23, was participating in an 11-week firefighter recruit class at the New York State Fire Academy in Montour Fall when he became unresponsive during an exercise involving breathing gear, the Watertown Daily Times reports. Morse, who also is an assistant chief with the LaFargeville Volunteer Fire Department, is in critical but stable condition in the intensive care unit at Guthrie Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, PA, according to WWNY-TV.

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The training, which had a break previously scheduled before the incident, is set to resume Tuesday as state police investigators continue to look into the matter. And that investigation, which also includes the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Public Employee Safety and Health Bureau (PESH-NYS), has sidelined some individuals previously involved with the program.

“Pending the ongoing investigation, certain instructors have been administratively removed from the training schedule," Chet Lasell, assistant director of communications at the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said in a statement, according to the Times. "There is no doubt this is a difficult situation and we understand the decision made by some departments to withdraw from the program at this time."

Instructors aren't the only individuals who might not be attending the program once it resumes Tuesday. Some of the 16 departments enrolled in the program are withdrawing their members, including four recruits from the Ridge Road Fire Department.

“In light of what happened, we brought them home,” Battalion Chief Sean McGarrity told the Times.

The Rochester Fire Department is considering a similar move with seven members who had been participating in the training. In the past, the department has used its own facilities for training, but the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented that this year.

Once the program restarts Tuesday, drills will focus on emergency vehicle operations and flammable gas training, according to the Times.

“The New York State Academy of Fire Science puts the safety and security of its recruits above all else,” Lasell stated. “It’s well known that firefighting is an inherently dangerous and physically demanding profession and that’s why we have worked tirelessly to ensure our curriculum not only prepares recruit firefighters for the rigors of live fire operations, but does so as safely and effectively as possible.”

If they want to return to the academy, recruits will be welcome to continue their training in the future, he said.