Joe Poole works as an on-call firefighter for Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service (WFRS) and in joining the service, he fulfilled an ambition he had held for a while.
He explained:
“I officially joined Warwickshire Fire and Rescue in May but started riding the truck in June after passing my initial course. For the last few years, I have wanted to be a firefighter and this was the first opportunity that came up. I wanted to make a difference in my area and also make my mum and dad proud.
“My other job outside of on-call is in administration. It works perfectly alongside being on call as I cover evenings after work. I have only had one instance since June so far where I have been on call and not been at work, but they are not unhappy about it. They appreciate what it is I'm doing.”
When asked what being an on-call firefighter involves and what an average call-out looks like, Joe said:
“An average callout can vary. Recently at Bedworth we haven't been as busy as it was in the summer. Every call out can be very different to the last. Sometimes we have AFA's (automatic fire alarms) or sometimes we attend RTC's (road traffic collisions) on the M6. During the summer we had a lot of field fires. Each job is different & you can never know what to expect!”
Joe explains what the best part about being on-call is:
“One of the best things about being on-call is being able to do the best of both worlds. I can get the thrill of working as a firefighter but also do my normal day job which I enjoy. I also get the bonus of making a difference in my area. I was in Tesco one time in Blues and somebody offered me to come to the front of the queue!”
And the biggest challenge faced since joining the service…
“One of the biggest challenges I have found since being on-call is learning everything I need to learn with being a firefighter and working towards becoming competent whilst also living my normal working life. There is so much to learn with being a firefighter but doing that whilst learning my day job can be difficult at times. I have found with being on-call I don't have much time for rest sometimes.”
Joe also told us what his friends and family think of him being an on-call firefighter:
“My mum and dad are very proud of me being a firefighter. It's almost embarrassing sometimes when they bring it up to people out of nowhere! My nan is also particularly proud as she has a photo of us in her living room from my pass out parade. They don't have any issues with me doing it as its not impacting their life massively and if I'm covering on call there is no complaints as they know it's something I want to do. In terms of my friends it doesn't affect too much as I still get to play football with them regularly and see them at the weekends if I am not covering.
“To anybody looking to becoming an on-call firefighter and considering it, do it. As soon as I saw it advertised, I knew it was what I wanted to do and I have no regrets since joining the brigade. I love every moment of it and I am never thinking to myself if my pager goes off 'I wish it wasn't', this is one of the best things I have ever done.”
We also heard from Joe’s mum, who shared her thoughts on him joining the Fire and Rescue Service:
“I was pleased he didn’t give up on his dreams as West Midlands refused to take his application further when we moved to Warwickshire. Super proud he is an on-call firefighter!”
We are currently looking for on-call firefighters to join our service. If Joe’s story has inspired you and you live or work within five minutes from an on-call fire station, or would be able to do your main job remotely from one of our stations, learn more and apply now.