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Here are some points to ponder for anyone taking the test:
The good:
1) We're pretty busy. We see between 100-120 calls a day on average. Some stations see more, some are retirement homes. This happens in every city.
2) We've got nice equipment and facilities. One thing positive about management here is they have given us the tools to do our jobs safely.
3) Specialty teams; bomb, dive, tech rescue. I'm not sure what they all do, but the training is free and they seem to have a lot of toys to play with.
4) Pay isn't bad, could be better, but then again every city can say that.
5) We burn. We, on average, see about a fire a day in the city. This could be a kitchen, one room, or fire through the roof of an apt building. Don't get me wrong, 80%+ of what we do is medical, but we still do see plenty of fire in fact, this year we've seen an increase.
6) We have a new chief that is extremely intelligent, and actually seeks input from the members on the floor. This is a good thing.
The Bad:
1) Yes, a large portion of the city is ghetto. This leads to increased crime, and violence. This translates to you being busy on the medics w/ shootings etc. You take that how you want, I look at it job security and experience you won't get in other places.
2) Morale is poor. We, just like other cities in the US, have felt the budget crunch. We've given up a lot. New hires don't get the same pension, nor post retirement benefits. We haven't had a pay raise in 3 years. Yet we're asked to do more and more everyday.
3) Training does not exist unless your on a specialty team. This has led to inexperienced officers and firefighters.
4) The dept is very young. We've had so much turnover in the recent years, most of the dept has 7 years or less on the job. Again, this has led to inexperience.
5) We don't operate like a traditional fire dept. Don't accept the job here and think that if you're riding a ladder truck, you'll be expected to open a roof. In the last 3 years I can count on 2 fingers the number of roofs we've opened.
6) Expect a lot of medic time in your first few years until you get into a normal rotation. If you're at a big house, there's less but if you're at a single engine house expect at least 2 shifts a cycle on the box.
With management changing we don't know where we'll be 5 years from now. Most likely, we'll be in a much better place, we can only hope. Any questions, PM me.
The good:
1) We're pretty busy. We see between 100-120 calls a day on average. Some stations see more, some are retirement homes. This happens in every city.
2) We've got nice equipment and facilities. One thing positive about management here is they have given us the tools to do our jobs safely.
3) Specialty teams; bomb, dive, tech rescue. I'm not sure what they all do, but the training is free and they seem to have a lot of toys to play with.
4) Pay isn't bad, could be better, but then again every city can say that.
5) We burn. We, on average, see about a fire a day in the city. This could be a kitchen, one room, or fire through the roof of an apt building. Don't get me wrong, 80%+ of what we do is medical, but we still do see plenty of fire in fact, this year we've seen an increase.
6) We have a new chief that is extremely intelligent, and actually seeks input from the members on the floor. This is a good thing.
The Bad:
1) Yes, a large portion of the city is ghetto. This leads to increased crime, and violence. This translates to you being busy on the medics w/ shootings etc. You take that how you want, I look at it job security and experience you won't get in other places.
2) Morale is poor. We, just like other cities in the US, have felt the budget crunch. We've given up a lot. New hires don't get the same pension, nor post retirement benefits. We haven't had a pay raise in 3 years. Yet we're asked to do more and more everyday.
3) Training does not exist unless your on a specialty team. This has led to inexperienced officers and firefighters.
4) The dept is very young. We've had so much turnover in the recent years, most of the dept has 7 years or less on the job. Again, this has led to inexperience.
5) We don't operate like a traditional fire dept. Don't accept the job here and think that if you're riding a ladder truck, you'll be expected to open a roof. In the last 3 years I can count on 2 fingers the number of roofs we've opened.
6) Expect a lot of medic time in your first few years until you get into a normal rotation. If you're at a big house, there's less but if you're at a single engine house expect at least 2 shifts a cycle on the box.
With management changing we don't know where we'll be 5 years from now. Most likely, we'll be in a much better place, we can only hope. Any questions, PM me.
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