News| Firefighters


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LEANNE Beeston is a college lecturer…who drives a 12-tonne fire truck in her spare time. “I go to the gym and run to


When she’s not in the class-


room, she’s in the thick of fires, cutting casualties fromroad crash wreckage or generally getting stuck into a range of other rescue operations. As one of the county’s on-call


firefighters, the 28-year-old not only holds down a dramatic sec- ond job, but also trains to keep her life-saving skills at the top of their game. “I love it,” said Leanne, who


first donned her fire kit five years ago. “I was always that kid who stood up in class and said I wanted to be a firefighter. “When I tell people what I do,


they’re always surprised, but my dad, Martin, was a firefighter, so it’s always been part ofmy life.” Tovil-based Kent Fire and Res-


cue Service (KFRS) says on-call officers are a vital part of a mod- ern 999 response, providing safety cover for 90% of the UK population. Unlike their full-time col-


Special skills


for fire drivers IN ADDITION to driving fire trucks, Leanne Beeston is also pro- ficient at the wheel of Larkfield’s 25-tonne bulkwater carrier. With a capacity of 14,500 litres, it


carries the same amount of water as eight fire engines. Operating these trucks under


blue lights is a major specialism, with drivers having tomaster fast and safe driving that does not spook othermotorists. Leanne says: “Heavy traffic is


often a problemand,while drivers are always willing to help, some- times there’s just nowhere for themto pull over. “We never tailgate and we


switch our sirens off in traffic, al- thoughwe keep the blue lights on. We don’t want to stress motorists into doing something dangerous. “Our biggest difficulty is


parked cars. There have been streets we just couldn’t get down – insteadwe’ve had to stop 40me- tres away and run in hoses. “We know parking can be a


problem, but we’d ask every mo- torist to check there’s space for a fire engine to get past before they leave their cars at the roadside.”


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keep my fitness levels up for the job, but I’mnot a fanatic.Wearing breathing apparatus and lugging hose in all the kit is hard work, but you don’t have to be super- woman for this role.” Leanne’s fellow on-call fire en-


gine driver, SJ Broad (38), was equallydeterminedtopursue a life in a haze of flickering blue lights. She joined KFRS six years ago. She said: “I was a size 20 when


Firefighters SJ Broad and Leanne Beeston


leagues, on-call firefighters do not attend shifts at a fire station, but are called out to emergencies via pager. This form of 999 service is used to protect the communities of Larkfield, Headcorn, Lenham and Marden, where KFRS is cur- rently running a recruitment drive. Leanne was so keen to become


a firefighter, she secured a job with Larkfield Fire Station before starting her full-time teaching and management careerwithHadlow College. “On-call firefighting is a great


job that fits around other commit- ments and family,” she said. “I spend my days teaching and nights on-call for the station.


I realised I wanted to be a fire- fighter. I spent two years getting myweight down before applying. “I was also a single parent, but


itwasn’t an issue for the fire serv- ice – I did on-call at nights with a baby sitter on stand-by while my son Kai was growing up, and I worked in a doctor’s surgery dur- ing the day. “It’s a hugely rewarding job,


and my advice to anyone who’s considering it as a career is: don’t think about it…do it. You won’t regret it.”


Howanon-call


systemworks ON-CALL firefighters are paid to be available for 999 “shouts” dur- ing pre-arranged periods. Unlike full-time officers, they


are not on work shifts, and can continuewith their everyday lives as long as they remainwithin five minutes of their designated sta- tion. The fire service will then contact themby pager if an emer- gency arises. Most have other jobs and pro-


‘We train hard for this’


SJ BROAD says she still feels a pang of excitement when the fire alarmsounds. “We train hard for every emer-


gency scenario we’re likely to en- counter,” she said. “So I wouldn’t say you get nervous on a ‘shout’. “There’s an element of excite-


ment. You get to do the things you’ve trained hard for – you get to go out and make a difference. Help people. “You’re part of a teamof profes-


sionals and we’ve all got each other’s backs. “Outdoor firesmake the biggest


impression on you – a field or barn fire. You see pictures of these


Maidstone East February 2019


things but you never appreciate the sheer scale of them. We also deal with a lot of traffic collisions. House fires account for a very small proportion of our workload.” Although successful on-call ap-


plicants are given extensive train- ing, would-be firefighters are put through a series of tests to ensure they have the physical ability and aptitude for the role. “You can work on your fitness,


but there are certain things you have to be naturally comfortable with,” said SJ. “You can’t have a fear of heights or enclosed spaces because these are environments youmight have to work in.”


vide cover outside their regular working hours. The fire service normally requires a commitment of at least 50 hours a week, with most contracts averaging at about 60 hours.


Is it for you? KENT Fire and Rescue Service has four basic requirements that all prospective on-call officers mustmeet. Applicants should be at least 18


years old, have a good level of fit- ness,work or livewithin fivemin- utes’ travelling time of an on-call fire station, and be availablewhen the local station needs cover. For more information, visit the


jobs page at www.kent.fire- uk.org


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