On International Firefighters’ Day, the City lauded firefighters for their bravery and the indispensable work they do in communities. But it seems the City isn’t the only government entity that recognises their value – so do those of other countries around the world.
In celebration of the day, fire stations across Cape Town threw open their doors to the public on Wednesday 4 May to give residents an opportunity to learn more about the City’s Fire & Rescue Service. While visiting Wynberg Fire Station, People’s Post learned that local firefighters are being snapped up by overseas’ employers.
What makes them so attractive is their training and extensive experience.
Leading a tour of the Wynberg Fire Station, firefighter Taufeeq Charles shared that when it comes to saving lives, the Fire & Rescue Service provides an all-in-one service.
“We do cats stuck in trees, dogs stuck in drains. The other day we had a bird stuck in someone’s roof. We also do gunshot wounds, maternities, ship fires, building fires; you name it, we do it. Mountain rescue, swift-water rescue, diving – we have a diving unit also,” said Charles.
Elaborating on how frequently staff qualified in basic life support and advanced life support assist in delivering babies, he explained that the residents of a close-by informal settlement, Bonnytoun, came to the fire station for just about any medical problem.
“But we do not transfer people to hospital. We stabilise and treat them and then we wait for the ambulance to come,” he said.
According to Charles, countries like Abu Dhabi, Dubai and India are grabbing South African firefighters “like crazy”.
“That is why the guys are all leaving for overseas because there it is specialised. If I were to go overseas, I would, for example, just do maybe a ladder.”
However, he says, it is not for him.
“The only thing is, if you go and work there, you have to sign a five- or 10-year contract. It is either miss out five years of your family’s life or chase the money.”
The trend of firefighters accepting overseas job offers, along with the impact of Covid-19 and retirements, seems to have contributed to a shortage in trained firefighters.
Wynberg Fire Station runs on a three-shift system. Firefighters work 24-hour shifts with one day on, two days off. Each shift is supposed to be manned by 10 firefighters, but at present there are only eight people on duty per shift.
“There are supposed to be four guys at the back of the fire engine; we are only running three guys at the back of the engine, so we are way understaffed,” said Charles.
For the past six months, the service was augmented by 40 seasonal firefighters, recruited for the summer season to assist with combatting wildfires.
According to Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith, the service responded, to 8 202 vegetation fires between November last year and April this year.
“This is in addition to the thousands of emergency calls to which the Fire & Rescue Service responds throughout the year – 22 632 to be exact, between (Saturday) 1 May (last year) and (Thursday) 28 April (this year),” said Smith.
“While the bulk of these calls are fire-related, 3 709 were motor vehicle accidents, 569 incidents of assault and many medical emergencies.”
In addition to all the dangers firefighters face daily in the pursuit of saving and safeguarding others’ lives and property, they have in recent years also become the targets of attacks. A search on Google, using the words “attack on firefighters in Cape Town”, generated about 33 100 results.
Addressing this, Smith said he wanted to remind residents that these men and women were putting their lives on the line selflessly.
“They are there to save the very lives of people who attack them and their equipment. It is unacceptable that during the course of their duties their hoses are sabotaged, vehicles are damaged and they are robbed of City and personal possessions,” he said.
But despite the high risks that come with being a firefighter, Charles says there is no other job that he would rather do. For him it is about being of service to the community.
“There are people who are so appreciative of what you are doing, saving their property, saving lives, and for me that is the most important thing,” he says.
