A day in the life of Wellington firefighters

Friday, 27 July 2018

A look into the daily life of Wellington central firefighters.

Phil Dean wasn't sure what he would find at the end of the pitch-black service tunnel.

Fearing a gas leak, the muscled and fresh-faced firefighter clambered into the crawl space with a small blue gas detector in hand.

A worker had failed to return from the building's plant room, possibly succumbing to gas in the tunnel, and someone called 111.

It was not unexpected for the crew at Wellington Central Fire Station, the second busiest in the country.

Firefighter David Tihana leads the way out of a tunnel under Wellington Central Station.

* Lower Hutt factory fire sees buildings evacuated and puts one person in hospital

* Imperial Tobacco building evacuated due to heavy smoke

Qualified firefighter Phil Dean has a tattoo of a fire crew at work on his arm, to mark the accomplishment that was becoming a firefighter.

* Tonnes of metal from quake demo to be** recycled

David Tihana, the newest recruit at 45 years old, folded his giant frame into the cramped space to follow.

Qualified firefighter Phil Dean listens to instructions before a practise drill which has him crawling through a tunnel under the building.

The gear hauled is heavy - about 15kg for the compressed air cylinder alone - and sweating is immediate in the heavily insulated firefighter's suit.

After 20 metres of crawling through dust, the radio's crackle barely rises over the muted roar of the breathing mask: the man has emerged from another exit, problem solved.

Regular drills, such as this ladder climb, reinforce the muscle memory required by firefighters in emergencies.

Of course, they were never going to find anything.

It's a fortunate end to a practice drill under the historic Oriental Parade station, just a small part of a career firefighter's job on a quiet Tuesday.

Assistant area commander John Mansford says any family, including an organisation of 14,000, will have its squabbles.

A job that Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ), formerly known as the Fire Service, hopes appeals to many.

The organisation, which employs 1700 career firefighters and 11,000 volunteers, is searching for nearly 100 recruits capable of taking on a physically demanding 12-week training course in Rotorua.

Recruiting fit people eager to serve the community is a competitive business. Police have been given a target of 1800 new cops by 2020, and pay $62,700 in the first year.

Corrections is also striving for new recruits - 61 graduated in Trentham on Thursday - and new officers earn upwards of $54,000 a year.

New firefighters earn less, starting at $45,700 a year, but there's a career ladder to climb and plenty of reasons to love the job.

Ask the firefighters of 'Brown Watch' (each shift is assigned a colour), poised to respond to Tuesday's portion of 2800 callouts a year.

Firefighters Dave Tihana and Phil Dean during a practise drill beneath Wellington Fire Central Station.

Dean, 29, a recent import from Auckland, has his right bicep tattooed with a renaissance-like image of a fire crew at work. This, along with his other passion: an open bottle of wine.

'It doesn't matter what else comes in life, whether I'm still in the uniform 30 years from now, I'll always be proud I've done it.'

Tihana joined in 2017 after growing tired of a private security career in Papua New Guinea.

Firefighting has that element of service, but it also offers him something long missing.

Firefighters train every day to keep their skills on point, in between attending any callout.

'First and foremost it was about spending more time with my family.

'The leave provisions they have.. are well-renown for being able to have a job and also spend a lot of time with the family.'

Wellington Central Fire Station is the second busiest in the country, receiving 2800 callouts a year.

But even a career spent keeping fit and experience taking orders didn't prepare him for the 12-week basic training.

'Nowhere in the course was their any preparation for rolling hose, and it's quite an arduous job for someone getting on in years.

'It was just a completely different aspect that I wasn't expecting, and suffered many a night.'

Both Dean and Tihana turn up early for their 14-hour shift, have coffee with the night crew, and are changing into their lapel shirts by 8am.

Firefighter is more a title than a daily task, there were no major callouts on Tuesday, and Tihana was yet to see a structure fire while on the job.

More than anything, it's about being fast. When a fire can consume a home in a matter of minutes, a crew is required within eight minutes of disaster for 90 per cent of the population, at all times.

The morning's check of sirens, flashing lights, the truck's engine, all ensure a quick response.

Thick rubber gumboots are pushed through the legs of insulated overalls, to save a moment during regular outfit changes.

The morning's first test of speed has the crew sirens blazing for a 500-metre stretch to Tennyson Rd, where a contractor has accidentally activated the fire panel.

As the building doesn't have sprinklers (much of the city's fire safety aspects are mapped by firefighters) a pre-determined response has multiple responding trucks attending - but is quickly called off.

'It's always the way, I just sat down with my cup of tea,' station officer Sam Fairley says.

Te Aro School, on the Terrace, is the site of a second alarm. The principal is waving at the bottom of the drive as the truck pulls up, a labrador tugging at her arm.

A child set off the alarm, it's switched off and a discussion is had about whether the boy should be spoken to.

An accidental activation at a Newtown bar warrants a final burst of effort for a quiet day, but in between callouts there's still work to be done.

Firefighters regularly tick off their capability with senior officers: calculating the pressure required to push water up an 18-storey high fire system, upskill in fire science or search and rescue, learn to assist young adults with 'fire-lighting tendencies'.

It's no longer just about fighting fires, assistant area manager John Mansford says.

'When something's going down, we can provide support to who's responding. We're there to make the community a lot more robust and safer.'

FENZ is hopeful new recruits will have the organisation better reflect its community, and has issues a review of bullying and harassment in the organisation, led by retired judge Coral Shaw.

Firefighting may move on from a world of firm handshakes, jocular banter, and daily clean shaves for the 96 per cent of career firefighters who are men.

'The good thing about our organisation is that it is one big family … when you've got 14,000 people in one family, there are going to be squabbles,' Mansford says.

'However I'm confident we've got the procedures in place to deal with our family squabbles before they get out of hand.'