The Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association will use $430 thousand on two training programs for professional and volunteer firefighters.

One program provides skills to self-rescue when trapped while on the job.

Association president Greg Horton says Fire Ground Survival Training will help firefighters in both self-rescue situations and when part of rapid intervention teams deployed to aid trapped firefighters.

“The Skills Development Fund will also allow us to purchase a mobile, state-of-the-art training prop that we can use to certify 150 trainers across this province. These trainers will then utilize the mobile training prop to deliver this training to our frontline firefighters and communities across Ontario,” says Horton.

The other offers peer support to firefighters dealing with mental trauma.

Horton says the funding will also them to train 90 additional peer support members to help deliver the program to firefighters across the province.

“Post-traumatic stress injuries are a reality in our profession. Having trained peer support groups who are available to their fellow firefighters that can serve as an outlet and recognize when the situation should be escalated to the next level of service provider are paramount to the overall mental health and well-being of our firefighters across this province,” says Horton.

There are about 30,000 firefighters in Ontario, including about 12,000 full-time firefighters, nearly 19,000 volunteer firefighters and more than 400 part-time firefighters.