Rural firefighters in staffing crisis

THEY NEED YOU: Volunteer brigades in Ruapehu and Rangitikei need people on the spot in small towns to get to fires quickly.A-030214WCSMFIRE2

The fire service needs more than 70 volunteers to plug shortfalls at all but one of its 13 brigades in the Ruapehu and Rangitkei districts.

Wanganui area manager Bernie Rush said the situation was serious, especially given the three to six months needed to train recruits.

"Ultimately, our communities have to rely on themselves to deal with fires and other emergencies, and this is especially the case for more remote places prone to being cut off by floods, slips, and other weather-related events," Mr Rush said.

"We can train, equip and support our brigades, but what we cannot do is fill places on their fire appliances."

Ruapehu district's six brigades in Taumaranui, Owhango, Manunui, Whakapapa, National Park and Raetihi need 30 firefighters to bring them up to their minimum recommended level of 115 personnel.

The only exception is Ohakune, which has a complement of 26 - one more than its minimum. Rangitikei's six volunteer brigades in Bulls, Hunterville, Mangaweka, Taihape, Ratana and Marton are down a third, or 41 volunteers, on their minimum total of 125.

"When a brigade can't turn out an appliance, the job falls to another one further from the scene of the incident. Frequently that means a longer wait for those who've called for help.

"The stark fact remains that after 10 minutes it becomes much harder to save a property that is alight - or to rescue anyone trapped inside."

Mr Rush said the problem was not new, but had become more pronounced recently. He said the fire service was working on a range of measures to boost volunteer numbers, including easier induction, more flexible training arrangements, more support for employers of volunteers, and more use of some volunteers to do non-operational duties such as administration and maintenance, freeing up others for frontline work.

"There are genuinely great things about being a volunteer. The sense of contributing to and being part of the community is a much underrated aspect of the job. Also, volunteers receive training in a whole range of disciplines - training that is transferable to other workplaces, as well as, of course, helping to save lives and property."

People interested in volunteering as a frontline firefighter or brigade administrative assistant should contact their local brigade directly, on one of two support officers listed below.

For Ruapehu, brigade support officer Aaron, 027 4571 600.

For Rangitikei, brigade support officer Colin, 027 4428 433.