One by one, each person grabbed a section of the hose. The first in line pulled the lever, blasting water out of the nozzle.

"Easy!" a more seasoned firefighter yelled, explaining that they just wanted to make sure the water was flowing.

They opened the metal door on the house — well… the big metal storage container.

The crew made its way to the blaze. With a few blasts of water, the fire was out, and they returned.

"It's HOT," a recruit yelled, though clearly unsurprised.

Onset Fire Department Capt. Raymond Goodwin was quick to point out: That wasn't even a "real" fire.

For the third time in four years, the Onset Fire Department and Marion Fire Department have banded together to educate and train aspiring firefighters.

"We like to share resources whenever we can," said Goodwin, who runs the class with the help of crews from both departments. "It's daunting for small departments to muster up the resources" to conduct a series of classes for recruits.

Marion Chief Tom Joyce, a 40-plus-year veteran of Onset Fire and a former Wareham police chief, said he's been pleased with the outcome of the joint venture: "The program has netted very positive results."

Thirteen of this year's recruits are from Onset Fire, while six are from Marion. They began their journey in January, and after more than 200 hours of training, will graduate on June 28.

They've learned the nuances of breathing with an oxygen mask, they've learned CPR, dealt with hazardous materials, put out a brush fire, and been taught about all the other aspects of the job.

In Marion on Monday, the recruits completed a much anticipated training exercise: fighting a structure fire.

"This is the culmination of everything we've done with them," Goodwin said, later adding: "They're ready to go into action now."

Sure, the situation was controlled and it was hay, not someone's personal belongings, burning on the inside. But that didn't make it any less intense.

"A heart rate of 180 usually gets you an IV and a ride to the hospital," said recruit Kevin Buckley, a Tobey Hospital ER nurse who served on Marion EMS before it merged with Marion Fire. "Here, it gets you 30 minutes of rest."

Recruit Pam Pike, whose husband, Rob, serves on Onset Fire, said that despite never having entered a burning structure before, she felt prepared.

"It's what we trained for," she noted. "It's putting all of our skills we've learned together and applying them."

Buckley and fellow Marion recruit Mike Enright took Chief Joyce up on his offer of firefighting training when the the fire and EMS departments merged.

Enright called the training "diverse," and noted that, while he used to watch the action "from the bumper of an ambulance," he now has a "greater appreciation" for what firefighters do.

Buckley agreed, noting that brush fire training was particularly intense.

"I think my glasses melted to my face that day," he joked.

Onset Fire recruit Nick Testone decided to join that department because his family has a long history in firefighting. He lives across the street from the Onset Village station.

"Every time I'd see them go out, I'd say, 'where're they going?'" he explained, adding that training has "just been wicked fun." (The structure fire training exercise was a bit of an unusual early birthday present for Testone, who turned 24 on Tuesday.)

After graduation, each of the recruits will serve as on-call firefighters in their respective departments. Because Onset and Marion frequently help each other when there's a big situation in one of the towns, the recruits will certainly see each other again.

"Getting to know everybody was fantastic," said Enright.

Goodwin thanked his fellow trainers: Onset Capt. Andersen, Lt. Dias, firefighters Braley, Houde, and Ingeno, and Marion Capt. Ayres, Lt. Miller, Lt. Dayton, and Lt. Auld.

And, Goodwin said, the recruits should be commended. "Onset Fire and Marion rely on citizens who come to protect other citizens."