My life seems to follow a peculiar pattern, based on a six year rotation. For example; Six years in secondary school, followed by six years in the army, followed by six years in security, followed by six years in Ireland taking it easy, followed by six years as a firefighter. Now I have just been promoted to an officer within the fire brigade and this is the reason for the delay. I had to apply for the promotion and then prove myself worthy in front of a promotion board made up of the Chief Fire Officer, an assistant chief fire officer, and a Personnel manager, all of which asked various questions based on my personal records and experience. I was up against another fire fighter who had been in the service longer than me, which could have caused a bit of ill feeling, and indeed did! I hope that I have been able to put that firefighter at ease. I firmly believe that my experience in the army is what made the difference, for it was there that I learnt how to be a leader of men. Promotion in any close knit team will cause a little concern for the other ranks initially, but after time a good officer will be able to gain the full support of his team, and I believe that I have been able to do that already by proving that I am able to do the job!
Now that I have settled into my new post I hopefully will be able to keep a bit more up to date with my blog. Here in Ireland we have all been having an unusually cold spell of weather which has caused havoc on our roads! we have also had an increase in chimney fires which can be explained by people burning more wood and even rubbish in order to stay warm, as they haven't been able to get a supply of the more traditional turf that they would normally burn. We even had our first Gorse fire up the mountain, 'in the snow and ice', this was the earliest mountain fire we have ever had, beating the previous one by nearly two months! It was also the first mountain fire for our newest recruit, he will get well blooded in the art of these fire's come spring!
I hope everyone had a good Christmas and new year, and once again I apologise for not keeping in touch.
I would like to end this post by saying farewell to a great Friend and a great fireman who's post I am taking on. Steve was a truly great and brave firefighter who was decorated for his bravery, we all will miss his sense of humour, his larger than life presence, and his calm assurance at a fire shout. I wish him and his family well for his retirement and hope he enjoys the extra time with his new Grand daughter.
Big Steve! on his last shout!
Our new Recruit! at first Mountain fire!
