GLYNN COUNTY, GA – On April 11th, the first Shipboard Firefighter Class in the state of Georgia was taught by Deputy Chief Harold Herndon of the Glynn County Fire Department to the 2008 Rookie Class. Deputy Chief Herndon is an NPQ Fire Instructor I and holds a Trainers certification from AGI Shipboard Fire Service Ltd. of Sidney, British Columbia and TEEX of Texas A & M University and is certified by the Department of Homeland Security as an instructor in the National Weapons of Mass Destruction Awareness level training. The course, officially known as "Marine Firefighting For Land Based Firefighters Awareness Level Training" is a joint effort of Savannah Fire and Emergency Services and the Glynn County Fire Department to form the Coastal Marine Firefighting Training Group. Each department has within its jurisdiction ports that are controlled by the Georgia Ports Authority.

The course is designed to train operations personnel to meet the Standard of Training for Land Based Firefighters that respond to Marine Vessel fires. To raise the Awareness of the "first in" companies to the possible hazards found in a marine environment, to increase firefighter safety at marine incidents and to reduce property losses through a training block. This training is for First Responders and personnel whose primary response is not to maritime emergencies. The overall goal of this training is to provide First Responders with the knowledge and skills necessary to safely respond to, and assess the hazards involved in a marine emergency.

The information for the course which is 6 hours in length is derived from, NFPA 1405 "Guide for Land Based Fire Fighters Who Respond to Marine Vessel Fires" (1996 Edition), NFPA 1005 "Standard for Professional Qualifications for Marine Fire Firefighting for Land-Based Fire Fighters", and IFSTA Marine Fire Fighting for Land-Based Firefighters." Topics covered include, definitions, the marine environment, organizational roles, structures, and resources and vessel types, vessel arrangement, construction and systems, vessel fire detection and suppression systems, vessel plans, drawings, and documents and cargo handling facilities.