ERT students earn Hazardous Materials certification

Please join us in thanking Lt. Mark Ford of Bellevue Borough Fire Department for conducting Hazardous Materials training with our Emergency Response Technology program!

Students earned a four-hour state certification of hazardous materials through the training that Lt. Ford provided. The certification is a requirement for students who plan to earn their EMT.

Lt. Ford is an AWBCC alumni and graduated from North Hills School District in 2002. ERT instructor Mr. Silnutzer invited Lt. Ford to conduct this training with the program.

“I enjoyed coming back and forming a relationship with the students,” Lt. Ford said. “I regularly see two of the ERT students at emergency scenes, and I hope now I am somebody that more students can connect with. It’s important for students to see graduates like myself who are still working in the field that they know and love.”

Mr. Silnutzer echoed those sentiments.

"I feel having graduates return is a great way for students to see where this program can take them in the future," ERT instructor Mr. Silnutzer said.

Lt. Ford earned his EMT when he was 16 years old and has renewed it every three years since then to continue working in the Emergency Response field. He is a lieutenant firefighter in the Borough of Bellevue and works part-time with Ross/West View EMS and McCandless Franklin Park Ambulance Authority.

“I still talk to people that I went to school with at Beattie,” Lt. Ford said. “I still have great support from people I went to school with, and they are people I see on a regular basis. It’s become a network of great people.”