San Diego Fire-Rescue Hiring Firefighters

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While cutbacks are being implemented in fire departments across the United States, San Diego Fire-Rescue, which protects the second largest city in California, is hiring firefighters to fill several vacancies left by retirees. The pay and benefits for this position are excellent, and needless to say, it offers applicants a rewarding career.

Even more incredible is the fact that the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department is one of the most diverse fire departments in the United States, offering its firefighters a wide range of special programs. According to Fire Academy Coordinator, Captain Craig Newell, "The City Fire Department offers many opportunities that aren't available in other large metropolitan departments. There's a Hazardous Materials Team, Bomb Disposal, and an Air Operations program. We're integrated in many different levels, (such as) a Lifeguard Service. It's the sixth or seventh biggest metropolitan department in California with 48 fire stations covering 360 square miles."

The minimum requirements for this position are that applicants must be at least 18 years old and have a valid Driver's License. Also, the State of California mandates that every professional firefighter must be an EMT, and certification involves taking a 9 month course offered by many community colleges. San Diego Fire-Rescue requires individuals to possess an EMT certification before applying with their department.

Once a candidate is selected from the pool of applicants, he or she must attend the city's fire academy for training. According to Captain Newell, the academy involves an initial three weeks of classroom learning, ten weeks of manipulative training on the fire ground, and a final week of classroom work.

Incredibly, this year there have not been as many applications submitted as there have been in past years. While thousands of candidates usually apply each time there are vacancies, this year only a few hundred have turned in applications, giving them a better chance at obtaining a spot in the academy. This is surprising to Captain Newell and Fire Department officials, given the excellent career opportunity that this position offers and the distressed national economy.

All persons interested in the job must apply in person, and the deadline for all applications is February 11, 2009 at 5 p.m. For further information on the positions available and how to apply, visit www.sandiego.gov/fireandems.