The Estevan Fire and Rescue Service is looking for new recruits through its spring intake.
Fire Chief Dale Feser said they want to bring in four to six new firefighters this spring. They currently have 26 firefighters, and Feser believes 30 would be an ideal number of firefighters capable of responding to calls.
“We’ve had a few people who have, unfortunately, had to part ways (with the fire department), as they had to seek employment in other areas of the province,” said Feser. “So we’re going to make sure we’re continuing to maintain a healthy number of firefighters.”
They are looking for individuals who are very good team players, and able to commit. They should also have some time on their hands.
“We do a lot of training,” said Feser.
Estevan has a paid, on-call fire department, so the firefighters could be called away from work or home. And they will receive calls at night.
The fire department also has a recruiting intake in the fall.
Feser noted the intake system, which was implemented in 2015, allows the new firefighters to gel as a group, interact with the veteran firefighters and receive some really good mentorship.
The deadline to apply for the spring intake is the end of April. Once the applications are in, they will do a review and contact the individuals they believe will be well-suited for the job.
“We will call them in for an interview process, and then do the final hiring,” said Feser. “It’s usually a two-stage interview process. Then they will be hired on, and they will take a 48-hour training course to give them a little bit of a skill set so that they’re safe on the fire calls. Then, of course, there will be continual training after that.”
Applications can be picked up at the Estevan fire hall.
