GARDEN ROUTE NEWS - In its efforts to combat unemployment, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment’s Working on Fire (WoF) Programme in the Western Cape have recruited 40 previously unemployed youth from various parts of the province, including from Hessequa and Bitou.
The recruits began their extensive 25-day training in Mpumalanga this week and are being trained in veld and forest firefighting skills covering advanced firefighting, fire safety, and other specialised skills.
The future firefighters were recruited from townships in Cape Town, Porterville, Mamre, Vredenburg, Kleinmond, Paarl, Bredasdorp, Swellendam, Riversdale, Slangrivier, Goudveld, Plettenberg Bay and Melkhoutfontein.
During recruitment, the new firefighters had to pass a fitness test to be selected.
The WoF fitness test consists of 40 push-ups, 40 sit-ups as well as running 2,4 km. Females have to complete the distance in 14 minutes and males in 12 minutes.
New recruits.
According to WoF, the province has 779 firefighters (including FSP) and the number will be more than 800 by December. Over 60 firefighters will also be recruited for the province’s Forestry Support Teams.
WoF in the Western Cape has 30 bases that are strategically placed to be able to render services to various partners.
General Manager Melany Duthie-Surtie says this latest recruitment was to ensure that the programme is adequately equipped to be able to assist in the next fire season.
“We are going to have another recruitment of about 100 firefighters. A number of these recruits will specialise in forest fires for forestry support project teams. Next month we will conduct our annual yellow card training to ensure our current ground crews are ready to tackle the summer fire season,” she says.
New recruits
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