Watertown Fire Department Seeking Transfers to Fill Openings for Paramedics

The Watertown Fire Department has added a new strategy to fill openings for paramedics — hiring candidates who transfer from other departments.

Traditionally, Watertown hires people off the Civil Service Exam list, said Fire Chief Ryan Nicholson, but recently the WFD put out a call for lateral transfers from other departments. The Fire Department has several openings after the City Council approved funding to run a second Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance .

“We are looking for transfers now, because paramedics are becoming increasingly difficult to hire,” Nicholson said. “So we’re doing the standard route that we’ve used before, and calling for the list from Civil Service. But we’re also on top of that, seeking transfers too, but they have to come from a Civil Service department to