CPAT Program is Unstoppable!
Since they officially opened the doors last May, the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) Testing Center – located in the City of Orange – has watched over 800 aspiring firefighter candidates take the CPAT physical challenge! In fact, in the month of December alone, 1,200 individuals have signed up to see if they’ve got what it takes to make it out there on the front line.
Not everyone is cut out to be a firefighter, and the CPAT definitely proves that concept.
Administered by the California Fire Fighter Joint Apprenticeship Committee (CFFJAC), the CPAT program is a true labor/management collaboration and is approved by the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the California State Fire Marshal’s Office (SFMO). “Because this comprehensive test was developed by the International Association of Fire Chiefs and the International Association of Fire Fighters, I firmly endorse this CPAT test,” said California State Fire Marshal Ruben Grijalva. “I encourage all fire departments throughout California to validate their operational procedures by implementing this test and to accept the CFFJAC CPAT card by recognizing this as the entry level demonstration of physical ability for all firefighter applicants.”
Since his appointment to State Fire Marshal by Governor Schwarzenegger this past August, SFM Grijalva has championed the efforts of the CFFJAC and its work with the CPAT. As an active participant with the CFFJAC program for well over a decade, he previously served as Fire Chief for the City of Palo Alto. In his new role as the top brass for the entire fire service in California, SFM Grijalva has made standardized firefighter training his primary focus. Weapons of mass destruction and wildland fire training are just two of the areas he intends to zero in on.
“I can’t stress enough, the importance of standardized firefighter training throughout our state,” he said. “The Fire Storm of 2003 proved once again, that California is responding to disasters and emergencies as one department when mutual aid is needed. It’s been said before, but I will say it again: firefighters need to have common language, common terms, common procedures when they’re out on the front lines… it’s as simple as that. The safety of our firefighters, and ultimately, the safety of our citizens depends on it.”
With regard to the CPAT program, SFM Grijalva plans to visit the site within the next few months. It’s booming popularity has already sparked the concept of opening up an additional CPAT testing site in Northern California. “When we opened the building in Southern California, we had no idea that it would take off like it did,” said CFFJAC Chair Dan Terry. “It’s unstoppable!”
For more information about the CFFJAC administered CPAT testing center, you may call toll free at (877) 648-CPAT, or click here for website access.