SWAMPSCOTT — The Select Board swore in the first firefighter hired out of civil service on Wednesday.
London Spain, Swampscott’s new firefighter, joined the Fire Department this week and was sworn in by the Select Board on Wednesday. Spain, 30, has previously served as a firefighter in Raleigh, N.C., and the Rowley Fire Department in Massachusetts.
Fire Chief Graham Archer said that the department has a great family of firefighters right now and Spain fits that high standard.
“London is a perfect example of the caliber of candidates that we hoped and believed that we would be able to recruit and attract when we went out on our own outside of civil service. He is of the same high caliber of candidates that we have been fortunate to have when we were in the civil-service system,” said Archer. “I just think we couldn’t have had a better first candidate to exemplify what the new hiring process is going to look like.”
Archer described Spain as a warm, approachable and engaging person on top of his experience and his competence.
“I think the community is going to embrace him and he is going to be a tremendous asset,” said Archer.
Spain is currently undergoing an in-house training and will be on probation for one year.
Spain grew up in Everett and graduated from Braintree High School in 2009. In 2010, he became an emergency medical technician (EMT).
Growing up, Spain lived close to a fire station and loved watching the fire trucks come screaming down the street. As he got older, he learned more about what a firefighting job entails.
“I wanted to become a firefighter since I was a little kid so it has been a dream and a passion of mine,” said Spain.
He transitioned to firefighting in 2016, starting part-time in Sherborn and eventually moving to Raleigh, N.C., where he completed a seven-month training at a firefighting academy.
“I have tried to take the civil-service test a couple of times, and I just wasn’t successful. So I took the jump to go down to North Carolina,” Spain said.
Working in a metropolitan area, Spain experienced a whole range of major incidents, including large fires, car crashes and nighttime episodes. He came back to Massachusetts in the fall of 2021.
What is different about Swampscott, Spain said, is that Raleigh didn’t have a lot of waterways. That is why he is now learning to work with boats, swim gear and ice-water gear.
Spain continues to maintain his EMT license and works part-time for Atlantic Ambulance, which serves the town, while being a part of the Fire Department.
“We run medical calls as well so we provide first-aid care before the ambulance arrives,” said Spain. “I am able to put those skills to use.”
His favorite part of the job is still riding the fire trucks and playing with the sirens, Spain said.
“I still feel like a little kid at times. I feel like I’ve got my dream job,” said Spain.
Moreover, he enjoys seeing little kids smiling and waving when they see fire trucks driving down the street
“To me, that was me at one point,” said Spain. “I saw the trucks come down and I emulated these firefighters, these guys (who were) kind of larger than life.”
Spain currently lives in Lynn, 10 minutes away from the Swampscott fire house.
In his free time, Spain enjoys spending time with his large family (he has six siblings and about three dozen cousins) and friends, playing recreational sports and working out.
“Being able to be back in this area is huge for me. I was away when COVID happened so I wasn’t able to come back and see my family,” Spain said.
He also serves as an assistant football coach and a track coach at KIPP Academy, a public charter school in Lynn.
The Fire Department has given two more conditional offers of employment to two candidates, who are undergoing additional background checks and are expected to go to a firefighting academy in late fall, Archer said.
“The response to our first post-civil service entrance exam was really gratifying,” said Archer. “We got the most diverse group of candidates we have ever had the pleasure of interviewing.”
