Eight new on-call firefighters ready to help their local communities

The eight new recruits were assessed by the Learning and Development trainers based at Ryde Fire Station on the Isle of Wight.

They were tested on their ladder pitching and hose reel jet skills, and will continue their firefighter development with their stations and with future courses with the L&D team.

Firefighters Michael Budgen, Aaron Lacey and Kierhan Kochanski-Dry will return to their Isle of Wight stations at Ventnor, Ryde and Sandown.

Callum Baldwin will respond to incidents with Havant, whilst Alfie Connell and Michael Pendred will join up with Emsworth and Droxford respectively.

Joining the local on-call crew at Botley will be Ian Browning and Alexander Milligan.

Station Manager Tim Clapp said: “From the start, the eight firefighters demonstrated an excellent attitude and respect for everyone, whilst displaying their enthusiasm throughout their training.

“Everyone worked as a team, putting in a tremendous amount of effort and performing well.

“As I met with the firefighters to welcome them into the service, they expressed how happy they were with how the course had been ran and delivered.

“They are now looking forward to joining their stations across Hampshire and Isle of Wight where they will continue to progress further with their training and development.”

On-call firefighters train in several modules during their development, attend a weekly drill night and make themselves available for agreed hours around jobs, family responsibilities and other commitments.

The firefighters come from across the county and from all walks of life. They are alerted to incidents via a pager.

To find out more about becoming an on-call firefighter, visit hantsfire.gov.uk