Central Coast firefighting academy finishes five months of training with five graduates now ready to help

By GARRET JAROS/Lincoln Chronicle

WALDPORT – Crawling in black-out smoke conditions while maneuvering in cramped spaces filled with dangling wires in a building engulfed in flames while wearing 65 pounds of gear is not something most people volunteer to experience.

Add the occasional roof collapse or floor giving way to send them plunging into the unknown and you have exactly what the five graduates of the 2026 training academy hosted by Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue signed on to do.

The five were awarded certificates and firefighter badges for completing the five-month academy during a ceremony attended by family, friends and Central Coast firefighters at the Waldport station Thursday evening.

Chief Jamie Mason read from a prepared statement prior to a slideshow highlighting the 136 hours of training the graduates went through since October.

“The recruits who stand before you today have been put to the test, not only in the classroom and training grounds, but also while pulling shifts with our on-duty crew to face emergency response situations enduring stress, increased adrenaline, sleep deprivation and maybe even a few of their fears,” Mason said. “To say completion of this academy process is not an easy task is an understatement …”

Graduates will need to complete more qualifications to become state-certified career firefighters, if they so choose. But graduation does give them the minimum firefighter 1, wildland firefighter 2 and hazardous materials responder credentials needed to become a full-fledged volunteer firefighter.

The five graduates — two of whom are Masons’ sons — are Elijah Gesh, 26, of Newport; John Whalen, 18, of Yachats; and Jamie Mason Jr., 18, Riley Mason, 17, and Tim Torres, 40, of Waldport.

Graduates agreed the academy was fun – even with the extensive classwork and hands-on training – which included wielding chainsaws to ventilate roofs, fighting wildfires and live-fire training with burning cars and buildings at the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training campus in Salem.

“The academy was really good and really good fun,” said Gesh, who will volunteer with the Central Coast and the Newport fire departments as he pursues a career as a firefighter. “I just love fire. I do wildland firefighting, so getting into the structure side is just extra fun. I plan to do the best I can to help my community.”

Mason Jr. said he has wanted to be a firefighter since childhood. He plans to get more certifications for firefighting and join the U.S. Air Force and its fire department – as his father once did – in September.

“My dad was my inspiration so I came here and become a firefighter just like him,” he said. “The academy was pretty fun. A little tiring every now and then. But overall, it was a great time.”

Riley Mason said attending the academy was “fun and exciting” and a lifelong dream on his way to becoming a career fighter. He also plans to join the Air Force and its fire department.

Whalen said he was attending emergency medical technician school when he just happened to drive past the Waldport fire station and saw COCF&R would be hosting a fire academy.

“And I thought that it would be a great next step for me in the emergency medical service,” he said. “The academy was good. Some parts of it were definitely hard, but overall it was a great experience. I met a lot of really great people.”

Whalen said he plans to volunteer with Central Coast until he attends paramedic school in the fall. “And then after that, I still don’t know.”

Torres, who described himself as “40 years young,” said he recently retired from the Coast Guard after 20 years and felt like he needed something more to do. He signed on for the academy so he could become a volunteer and help as needed.

“They’re always short staffed of volunteers so I’ll do that,” Torres said, but added he has no plans to pursue firefighting as a career. “I’ll let the young guys take that one.”

Mason said all the graduates did a great job and that he was proud of them as well as being a “very proud” father.

“They all went through a lot of work, a lot of sweat and a lot of stress,” Mason said. “We wanted to make sure that they understood how important this work is. And how important it is for you to be very skilled, very ready for response.”

Between the serious training of learning search and rescue techniques, mayday training – “which is critical for firefighter survival” — there was also fun to be had. Especially in the “fall-through-the-floor” exercise where recruits get a taste of what it feels like when everything goes wrong.

“… the instructors may have enjoyed themselves a little too much watching those floor drop moments,” said a Central Coast Facebook video and post. “Purely for educational purposes of course.”

The academy was the third hosted by Central Coast in the last three years.

The Seal Rock Fire Department, which unlike other coastal agencies is flush with volunteers, is running its own academy which is expected to wrap up in mid-March.

“We have four people going through the academy now,” said Seal Rock training chief Joe Munger. “We had eight graduate from our academy in December and 10 graduate in our academy last year. I normally do one academy a year, but I’ve had so many people reach out.”

Munger added that he is “pretty excited about what the future holds” as he continues to partner with the Salem-Keizer School District and has plans to reach out to the Toledo School District.

• Garret Jaros covers the communities of Yachats, Waldport, south Lincoln County and natural resources issues for Lincoln Chronicle and can be reached at [email protected]