BORDERLAND
Toledo fire recruits graduate later today
2/21/2014A class of Toledo fire recruits will graduate today.
The group of nearly 50 men and women went through 13 weeks of fire training and another nine weeks of emergency medical technician training.
The ceremony starts at 7 p.m. at the University of Toledo’s Doermann Theatre.
The graduates will honor their fallen classmate, James Dickman, 31, who died in the line of duty Jan. 26, along with Private Stephen Machcinski, 42, while fighting a fire at 528 Magnolia St., a two-story apartment building in North Toledo.
The building’s owner, Ray Abou-Arab, 61, 1131 Sierra Drive, Oregon, is accused of setting the fire and is charged with two counts of aggravated murder, each with death penalty specifications, two counts of murder, eight counts of aggravated arson, and one count of tampering with evidence.
He is in the Lucas County jail in lieu of $5.85 million bond.