As a Firefighter there are many aspects of the job
that people enjoy,one of which is that every shift is different.
Imagine going to work and not having to do the same
mundane routine every day.
At a moment’s notice you could be required to attend a major incident and be involved in saving many lives, you could be requested to assist other Firefighters in areas other than your own station's Fire ground or you could be working within the community providing valuable information to members of the public.
Contrary to belief, a Firefighters job involves rather a lot more than rescuing cats stuck in
trees and putting out fires.
What better way of ensuring members of the community are kept safe than to target the reduction and likelihood of incidents occurring in the first place.
This is achieved in a number of ways and a Firefighters role can include:-
School visits- Communicating effectively with young children and making them aware of the dangers of fire and what to do in case of an emergency.
Community groups- This may be done by attending local fetes, open days, festivals in areas of different background or culture.
Voluntary organisations- Helping organisations that care for the elderly or people with learning or physical disabilities.
Industrial and commercial- Visits to areas of employment involving large numbers of staff, greater fire risk or potentially hazardous substances.
Residential- Home visits to talk to people about fire safety in the home and providing the free fitting of smoke detectors.
As you can see we've not yet even begun to mention the type of incidents that a Firefighter may be required to attend.
Ok, an emergency call is made and within seconds of being alerted the Firefighter is preparing themselves for whatever their duties may involve, within only a few minutes they are ready to go and on their way to the location of the emergency.
Here are just a few types of things a Firefighter could be faced with:-
Checking premesis after the activation of a Fire Alarm.
Firefighting in buildings and rescuing those people trapped.
Releasing people from vehicles following a Road Traffic Accident (RTC).
Extinguishing fires involving vehicles, vegetation, waste materials etc.
Chemical spillages
Animal Recues
Rail Incidents
Aircraft Incidents
Ship Incidents
Persons trapped in lifts, Machinery, limbs trapped in various ways etc.
Structural collapse
Making accident scenes safe
Dealing with casualties and fatalities
There are still areas that are not mentioned here but as you can see a Firefighter's role involes far more than some people realise.
A Firefighters Job