Thousands of applicants are expected to apply for permanent and retained (on-call) positions at FRNSW, which launched its 2018 permanent firefighter recruitment campaign on Monday. 

Orange Fire Station Officer David Beattie said they want recruits who are ready to do anything, not just fight fires.

“We are always looking for permanent firefighters with broad skills. But the retained (on-call) firefighters need to be available 24 hours a day and seven days a week. They can be called out at any time of day or night,” Mr Beattie said.

Data shows that Orange has the busiest fire station in the Central West.

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“Orange is a big central town in the Central West and we have a large population. We get a mix of all calls including those for rescue, automatic fire alarms, and house fires,” Mr Beattie said.

FRNSW launches a recruitment campaign every two to three years in the state.

According to the latest available data (2016/17) there were 3517 full-time fire officers and 3341 retained (on-call) fire officers deployed at 335 various fire stations across NSW.

Brad McWilliams, a senior firefighter at Bathurst Fire Station, said it’s a state-wide campaign to recruit new firefighters into their permanent ranks.

“We are asking applicants to think outside the box and we are really looking at people who may not have necessarily considered it a career option before,” Mr McWilliams said.

“Permanent firefighter positions are very popular among people but they might not show same level of interest for retained (on-call) firefighter positions because of changes in circumstances, including the drought in the state,” he said. 

“FRNSW is great place to work and helping the community.”

FRNSW Acting Chief Superintendent Brendan Cox said currently they have one or two vacancies at each of these stations.

“We aim to recruit approximately 300 new retained (on-call) firefighters across NSW each year to fill places vacated by firefighters who have retired or moved on,” FRNSW said in a statement.

“It can be difficult to recruit retained (on-call) firefighters in some regional and isolated areas due to demographic changes, such as an ageing or declining population, and the impact of drought on employment.”

“They are highly-trained and trusted first responders on scene at road crash rescues, hazardous material incidents and severe weather-related events, and they play a crucial role in educating communities about fire safety,” he said.

FRNSW is looking for recruits who have: