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What Is It Like To Be A Firefighter?

The firefighter is one that needs to stay in shape for the work they must do. The need to be physically fit to withstand the elements of the fire and also the stress associated with the emergency situations that arise. While on duty, they stay in the fire station. For those with a specialty in the fire service, they may not be assigned to a regular station but stay for duty at an airport facility or a factory facility. Hours of duty usually mean they pull shifts of three days on and four days off. Then it switches to four days on and three days off. This provides at least 40 to 50 hours each week of work. Each shift runs about ten or twelve hours each time. While at the fire station, they live like anyone would at their own homes being able to eat, sleep, shower, and watch television when they are not working on the trucks and equipment or responding to calls. Fire marshals and fire investigators usually do not respond to regular calls and will work from an office. Fire inspectors ensure the buildings in the area are up to code and are being run by the laws set to ensure fire safety. *Firefighters wear different types of gear to provide protection to them while they are in a fire or dangerous situations. The biggest piece of gear essential tot the firefighter is the turn out gear. This provides fire and glass protection from head to toe when combined with a pair of gloves, boots and a helmet. Turn out gear is very heavy and very hot. In the summer time it can be a hundred degrees inside the turn out gear. This is why it is so important for the firefighter to be in top condition physically. *A firefighter’s salary runs about $35,000 to $60,000 a year. Some specialty firefighters use make as much as $75,000 a year but have undergone extensive training and are put into extremely dangerous situations. The amount of jobs for firefighting is expected to rise in the future and there will be more positions opening up for anyone who wants to make this their full time career. *