Fire Department Seeking Volunteers to Meet Growing Demands

Cheshire firefighters continue to see a high number of calls and although the fire department has been able to meet the needs of the community, they are continuing to recruit volunteers in an effort to address growing needs.

The department continues to operate primarily on a volunteer basis, officials said, with five paid staff members and a volunteer staff that includes 60 volunteers and 12 high school students, but with a fast paced lifestyle that can leave the town with a minimum number available at times, more are needed.

Do you have what it takes?

“I don’t think people don’t want to volunteer; it’s just that people are too busy,” Fire Chief Jack Casner told the Cheshire Citizen this week. “The problem with society today is that everyone’s working constantly, with one or two jobs. They have families, and part of the problem is that it’s a huge time commitment.”

In the community, the department responded to a total of 759 calls in 2012 – down from a record high 1,131 in 2011 – and the department remains on pace to come close to their 2012 numbers again this year, according to statistics available on the Cheshire Fire Department webpage.

Officials said the majority of calls tend to be accidents, although about 30 percent can be attributed to fire alarms with no fire.

The Cheshire Citizen reported that volunteers check equipment Monday nights, a team building and safety oriented activity, and are eligible to respond to calls after completing 400 hours of training.

For more information on how to become a volunteer, or for details, visit the department’s webpage by clicking the link provided.

Make sure to like Cheshire Patch on Facebook and follow on Twitter for breaking news, daily updates and more!