HEART OF THE COMMUNITY: Local community is key for Cullen's retained firefighters
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WITH a firefighting pedigree stretching back over half a century, the retained team at Cullen fire station are continuing to meet the evolving challenges of helping keep their local community safe.
Very much embedded in the community they serve, Heart of the Community – our feature looking to put the spotlight on the great efforts of local groups in towns and villages across Moray and Aberdeenshire – talks to Watch Commander Simon Tucker about the demanding but rewarding role the team plays.
Q. How big is the team at Cullen fire station?
A. We've got six at the moment but we're on a recruitment drive to get that up to 10. This ensures time off and continuity of cover to support the community.
Q.The firefighter's role has changed a lot over the last few years. What has this entailed?
A. Our traditional role was fighting fires and attending RTC (Road Traffic Collisions) and while we still have that as a core we perform so many more diverse functions.
For example, we've specialised into rope rescues, urban search and rescue and trauma care where we assist ambulance and paramedic colleagues. We use all-terrain vehicles for fighting the likes of wildfires.
We do CPR and defib training and work closely with the local primary schools in Cullen and Portknockie.
There's so any facets to the role now it makes you open your eyes and think on your feet.
Q. Being a retained firefighter is lot more than just a job, isn't it?
A. We come from the community we serve so the people we're looking after are our family, our friends, our neighbours. This makes us more aware of the impact incidents can have on people's lives but this makes the job a lot more rewarding as well.
There are lots of ways we're involved with the community outside of our traditional firefighting role. Prior to Covid we attended galas and similar events.
As I mentioned before, we do a lot of educational projects with local schools and nurseries, we give talks on bonfire safety when it's that time of year.
We offer home fire safety visits to make sure people's smoke alarms are working OK and give them advice to try and reduce the risk of fire in their homes.
Q. In addition to serving their community, what are some of the other benefits of being a retained firefighter?
A. Self-development is a major one, you see people grow and mature as individuals. You learn to work as a team and many of the skills you gain as a firefighter you can take outside a fire service setting, for example first aid skills.
It's also a chance to make new friends and meet people you'd probably never get the opportunity to otherwise.
For me, the best bit is when the pager goes – you never know what you're going to face. I've been with the fire service for 21 years, 12 of those as whole time, and it's the best job ever!
Q. How did the last two years of Covid restrictions affect the team?
A. We had to reassess how we trained, how we turned out to incidents and how we used PPE –basically how to be as Covid safe as possible while still being available to turn out. It presented a lot of challenges but it didn't stop us doing our job.
During lockdown we had the chance to volunteer with north-east coronavirus hub covering Moray and Aberdeenshire. This involved working with other stakeholders to support vulnerable people, for example making sure they had food parcels or medicine.
This was a huge task, far, far bigger than I had ever anticipated. It was a truly humbling experience and an incredible learning curve.
Q. As we start to head towards something approaching normality, what do you see as the main challenges facing Cullen fire station?
A. Moving forward, recruitment and retention of staff to ensure we can respond when needed is a major ongoing priority.
The fire service is always evolving, including new vehicles and technology.
New challenges are always emerging. For example, dealing with fires or RTCs involving electric vehicles poses new questions, and changes in building construction methods and technology can make a big difference.
