The Alpharetta fire department has relied on hiring certified firefighters/AEMT/paramedics over the past 20 years. But at a recent city council meeting, the department states this is no longer an option due to limited applicants.

To address this, the city is establishing its own recruitment school, like most metro Atlanta fire departments. These six individuals will spend 12 weeks in AEMT school and 14 weeks in fire school. Alpharetta Fire will conduct the fire school and partner with Faithful Guardian Training Center to provide the EMT and AEMT portion of training.

The city will pay $1,900 for tuition per student enrolled and initially has budgeted for $18,000.

Faithful Guardian has trained several of the city’s current employees.