Fire Fighters (NF)

[Hellfish]

I know this is a fishing site, but just bare with me,Well im just curious, im just tryin to get things organized in my life, and am curious about how to become a firefighter training and so forth. Ive looekd on the net and found some stuff but im just curious if anyone has any personal experience or any information that could help assist in this process. Thanx in Advance

[grt1]

What kind of fire fighter? like a municipal type or forest fire fighter?

[Hellfish]

What kind of fire fighter? like a municipal type or forest fire fighter?

 

Basically looking for municipal training and schooling i know flemming has a firefighters course and a forest fire course as well. Other than that i know cpr is a must and already am updated on that and a couple chemical courses as well. So just looking where to go from there.

[pigeonfisher]

Go to the Fire Hall and talk to some of the guys there.

[tjsa]

Where's Lew(retired firefighter) and Smokey(active firefighter)?

 

They can give you all the info.

[Hellfish]

TJSA thanx for the info I hope they see the post. Im planning on going to the fire hall in a couple days but just wanted to know a little bit before i headed there, didnt want to be dumb founded and feel akward

[OhioFisherman]

I applied to be one down here in like 1976, the city I was living in had an add in the paper. I made the application and received a card in the mail to take a civil service test for the job. That was as far as I got in the process, I had already found another job driving a truck, it paid better, I didn`t have to go to Cleveland for training, a plus, and I didn`t have to jump out of an 80 foot tower into a net, also a plus.

 

Down here some cities(smaller) have volunteer firemen, big cities have a regular force, 24 hours on duty at the station and 48 hours off. We used to get a lot of them working part-time on the truck docks on their time off.

 

The pay wasn`t bad, benefits were good, and there is a lot of job security, but dangerous work.

[Bernie]

I was a volunteer firefighter in our community for 20 years. Some young fellas have gotten a start on a full time career here. If you are in an urban area where full time departments are the norm, it would be a good idea to talk to a guy like Lew who may know someone that you could get in touch with. Good luck with it hellfish, it would be an awesome career. It's not easy though. Lots of training involved, teamwork is a key as well so getting along is paramount. Physical condition-better be in good shape

[easton13th]

I know in Hamilton they have recruiting events. These cost $25.oo to attend, there is a test. If you past the test with an 80% or better average, you move on to an ability or athletics test at York University. Again another charge $150.00. From there if you obtain an 80% average, you move on to more testing and interviews etc. From there you get onto the hiring process. Hamilton holds these once a year. Last test I participated in 3500 people wrote the exam. 300 people moved on to the athletics. 250 moved onto interview. They were hiring 0 - 50 firefighters over the next year. If you did not get hired you had to do it all over the next year......?

 

Good luck with your endeavour, all the best..

 

Again this is just Hamilton.

[Hellfish]

Easton thats a little discouraging thats for sure, but im still going to go for it cause if the firefighter thing doesnt happen always forrest fires fighters out west so id rather stay locally in south west to northern Ontario but cant be picky i guess Nippising it is def very physically demanding, and im in ok shape nothing a little esercise couldnt fix. but again im willing to tough it out and the testing in my opinion should come last after you get the theory and processes down, thanx again for the info so far.

[lew]

Just by coincidence, my 1st day on the Fire Dept was 39 years ago today, but the hiring process and qualifications have changed drastically in the last 4 decades, so I really can't offer too much as to what you need to know as far as certificates and courses required for acceptance.

 

Advanced First Aid, CPR and a DZ license are definately required as far as I know though, even before your considered.

 

I'd suggest contacting the Training Division of your Department and they could steer you in the right direction, but stopping into one of the stations and talking to a few of the younger guys who have been hired recentely would also be a good idea.

 

FireFighting is one of the most sought after jobs there is in the country and the list of applicants is always very large, so there is plenty of competition whenever openings become available.

 

I've been retired for 6 years now, but never regretted a single day on the job.

 

Good luck.

[Clampet]

My nieces' husband is one.

He runs 5 miles every morning.

You better be in good shape.

[wvmedic]

Hellfish, do a net search for Firefighter challenge. This is the basis a lot of Departments in the states are using for there agility testing.

 

Also for the written exam in the states they ask basic math, mechanical such as ratios, levers, inclines and such. The mechanical part is to show the advantage of using levers, inclines and ratios such as gears and pulleys for fire ground tasks.

 

There is also general English type stuff like sentence structure, and comprehension type stuff and mapping. There will be maps asking you to take the shortest route from point a to point b while avoiding one-way streets etc.

 

I hope this helps.

 

I was a volunteer for 26 yrs. And worked for a paid dept for a short while then went to paid on call for the same city department.

 

Jeff.

[spanky]

My cousin is trying to become a fire fighter, from what i know he's taken all the courses the red cross offers (first aid, CPR, first responder, etc), he has done some testing for the govt., i know he's had a couple interviews not sure what for, he got his license to drive the truck (DZ i assume?) and he is now in Alberta in "school" for 3 months.... not sure what the schooling is all about, i just know he had to write a bunch of tests, have some evaluations/interviews done before they accepted him. It was recommended to him by a fire fighter, i believe, that he go there and take the course... there's alot of hoops to jump through and many different paths to take from what i hear.

 

He is planning on returning to the Niagara area to find a job, maybe he already has one, not sure... just know he's not staying in Alberta

[easton13th]

Please don't let what I said be discouraging. It is worth a try. I tried and went through it all and never got hired. That was a bit discouraging BUT I tried. Getting to old now to try again though.

[Hellfish]

I hear what ur saying Easton it is a very sought after job, with what ive come up with itz going to take a little while for the schooling through Flemming college and then theres another training like what phat bassturd said as well so thats going to be a year and a half of just schooling nevermind the training part, so im willing to go to the extreme as far as the schooling part goes and the training part is preety straight forward (physical tests and such) so prolly be about a 2-2.5 yr endeavour just getting ready b4 the big test. So i mean im going to do all i can and am willing to go preety much anywhere from ontario to BC so i hope it all works out. And again cant thank you guys enough for the information.

[danc]

I'm not sure how you'd apply, but the forest fire fighting business is booming in Northwestern Ontario, and with no end in sight. We have had almost no snow this winter and talk of a very busy fire season has already started. Check with the MNR. That's who you'd be working for.

 

[Hellfish]

DanC thanx for that, flemming has a specific course for the forest fires i might check it out, seems a little more feasible.

[Rustic-Fisher]

Hey,

I have been a firefighter in Toronto for 6yrs,

Applied to many different departments and was lucky enough to be hired by Toronto.

BEST JOB IN THE WORLD!!!(for me anyways).

The biggest piece of advice I can give ya is DON'T GIVE UP!!! The application process is extremely competitive but if you keep at it you will persevere.

Take as many college programs, weekend courses, or any other courses you think will make you stand out from the other applicants. Trade licences are also great.

Also start some volunteer work in your community ie big brothers, Red cross and so on......this is extremely important.

As stated earlier in the thread, head to your local fire station grab a person that was hired recently and ask a million questions.

 

Good luck,

Ryan

[Smokey]

The info here pretty much covers it. Most departments in the future are going to be asking for the preservice fire course offered by one of the colleges in Ontario as prerequisite to getting hired. It would give you a basic task level knowledge of the job before getting on. As for other courses you should getting and keep up to date cpr, first aid and if you can get your DZ licence. Anything above and beyond that is a bonus, like volunteering and work in the community. Also keep yourself in shape as the fitness testing has mostly been moved to Brock University and they are using the BMI(Body Mass Index) as part of the test and failing alot of people on being a bit over.

 

Never get discouraged I know guys that have applied over ten years before getting hired. Each time you write the hiring tests make notes and use them before next test as they often use the same tests over and over again and soon you'll have it all figured out. Get used to talking and being interviewed by groups as all interviews are done by panels and your in the spotlight. Most questions are behavioural questions and not work related as that should be covered in your resume.

 

I noticed you mentioned SSF course they have one of the best as they have a training centre and fire ground to use each day. So your getting more time there and doing more practical then the colleges that have to rent grounds when they can get them. If you do get to SSF and your located in right part of town you can probably get you into a volunteer system as Junior FF to log calls and time to complete your training and gain experience. This stuff looks great on the resume and if you do well it will also get you a good letter from the chief for reference.

 

Hope this helps and Good Luck with it. You can PM me if you have any other questions.

 

Mike

[rtrudeau]

If you can get on as a volunteer in your area to gain experience and also to see if firefighting is actually your gig. There are many school that offer firfighting courses now but I would suggest getting into a three year course versus a one or two year course. This way you can take fire protection, sprinkler stuff, and fire prevention stuff as well as suppression. Here in Toronto there is also a career prep course offered by the city a few times a year. It cost a couple hundred bines I think, but from what I hear it is well worth it, and I know of a couple people who have taken it and are now on the job. Hope this helps. If you have any other questions, pm me. Ryan