COM Fire Academy Cadets Turn Classroom Training into Community Service After Residential Fire in Dickinson

COM Fire Academy Cadets Turn Classroom Training into Community Service After Residential Fire in Dickinson
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COM Fire Academy Cadets Turn Classroom Training into Community Service After Residential
Fire in Dickinson
COM Fire Academy Cadets Turn Classroom Training into Community Service After Residential
Fire in Dickinson
Mar 26, 2026
(Left to right) Dickinson Volunteer Fire Department Chief and COM Fire Academy Instructor
Tim Johnson, COM Fire Academy Cadets Jordan Lowe, Efrain Perez, Ruben Sanchez, Dakota
Lloyd, Ashtin Anderson, Isaiah Kam, Jackson Elliott.
When a residential fire impacting several homes broke out in Dickinson on Monday,
March 16, 2026, College of the Mainland (COM) Fire Academy cadets stepped up for their
community and put months of rigorous training and instruction into action.
After professional crews from the Dickinson Volunteer Fire Department and neighboring
agencies from League City, Bacliff, Texas City, La Marque and Santa Fe brought the
blaze under control, COM Fire Academy Cadets including Ashtin Anderson, Jackson Elliott,
Isaiah Kam, Dakota Lloyd, Jordan Lowe, Efrain Perez and Ruben Sanchez from class 0226
arrived on scene to assist with exterior cleanup, rolling up fire hoses and loading
equipment. The kind of essential, hands-on work that keeps fire response operations
running smoothly and safely.
Dickinson Volunteer Fire Department Chief and COM Instructor Tim Johnson was responding
to the scene when he contacted fellow COM Instructor Stan Kozlowski to ask the cadets
if any of them were interested in coming to help after class Monday. For many of the
cadets it was a defining moment, a chance to stand shoulder to shoulder with working
firefighters and contribute meaningfully to their community before receiving their
certifications.
"This is exactly what we prepare our students for,” said Johnson. “Not just the technical
skills, but the mindset of service. When their community needed help, our cadets showed
up. That says everything about who they are and what they will bring to this profession."
College of the Mainland's Fire Academy is built on the belief that great firefighters
are made not only in the classroom and on the training ground, but in the moments
when our communities need real help. The program equips students with the knowledge,
skills and character to protect and serve, and Monday's response was a testament to
that mission in action.
"This is why I wanted to do the job in the first place,” said Ashtin Anderson, COM
fire academy cadet. “It was a pretty exciting experience to be on the ground and working
before I’m considered a full-fledged firefighter."
As the next generation of fire service professionals, COM cadets are already proving
that when disaster strikes close to home, they are ready and willing to answer the
call.
College of the Mainland’s Fire Technology Program consists of three areas of fire
service training: Fire Academy, Fire Technology Associate of Applied Science (AAS)
degree, and Continuing Education courses. These programs are designed to build upon
each other toward a career in the fire service. For more information, visit the
Fire Technology page
.
Contact
Jose Salazar
Senior Communications Specialist
409-933-8923
1 888-258-8859, ext. 8923
jsalazar18@com.edu
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