Firefighter during service

Top 10 Fire Fighter Skills

Being a firefighter is a matter of pride and honor. They are undoubtedly the real superheroes of this world, putting their life on the line to save others. They are an extremely crucial part of the community and serve many purposes than just putting out fires. That’s why so many Americans aspire to be a firefighter.

In 2020, the firefighter department in America received around 36.4 million calls, out of which 1.3 million calls were for a fire emergency. This staggering amount of fire emergencies goes on to show how vital firefighters are for any town, city, state, or country.

New York City has around 1,214 volunteer firefighters companies with thousands of volunteers that help the 11,000 employees working in the FDNY. Whether voluntary or not, these firefighters possess a specific skill set and attributes that make them qualified for this dangerous profession. Let’s a look at some of these skills and traits one needs to become a firefighter:

Physical Fitness

There is no doubt that this is one of the most challenging professions that require a person to be equally tough if they want to do well. All forces, armed or civil, require the highest level of fitness, so getting into these forces is so difficult. You are required to be fast, agile, flexible, and need to have tremendous strength to get through some of the most challenging situations that may arise during service.

Firefighters are required to carry heavy items like a ladder, fire extinguishers, a water hose through fires, and tough terrains. If you’re not fast enough or lack the muscle needed to maneuver through these situations, then you’re putting everyone at risk, including the team, the people who need to be rescued, and yourself. Each second is precious, and the less time you waste, the more chance you have of saving a life and putting out the fire.

Teamwork

One of the most important skills needed to be a firefighter is teamwork. Firefighting is all about being a team player. Each person in the team has a specific role to fulfill and every role is interdependent on the others to ensure success. It is an essential skill that not only keeps others safe around you but yourself as well.

The ability to trust each other allows firefighters to tackle such dangerous situations more effectively. They often find themselves in sticky situations and need the backup of their squad to help them out. Also, firefighters follow specific protocols and a plan when they go in. Anyone who tries to be too heroic or wants to be a hero puts everyone involved at a risk which is why being a team player is vital for this job.

Ability To Work Under Pressure

Every day, firefighters find themselves in life-threatening situations which require them to act with great courage and bravery. These situations put them through extreme stress and pressure, and dealing effectively with this pressure is an absolute necessity. Otherwise, they can injure themselves very badly, which can also result in fatalities in severe cases.

Firefighter in actionNot only does your ability to handle pressure well ensure your safety, but also the safety of other firefighters and the people you’re rescuing. Being able to handle pressure situations well means you can thrive at being a firefighter and get awarded with some of the highest achievements a firefighter can get.

Adaptability

Firefighters go through hours of training before they’re eligible to perform officially. These pieces of training include different types of scenarios that these firefighters typically have to face daily. However, things don’t always go as planned, and these firefighters will often find themselves in situations that they didn’t train or prepare for.

Situations like this need them to respond accordingly and quickly, which can only be done if they can adapt. This is why adaptability is a critical skill that all firefighters need to have. Things and situations are never the same in this profession and are always dependent on the situation. Being adaptable allows you to be prepared for the worst, which is very common when trying to save lives while fighting a fire.

Flexible

Being flexible in such a profession means that you have to welcome every situation and inconvenience that may arise. There will be times you’ll be required to work long hours, function on minimum food and sleep, and work outside your comfort zone. These are just some of the things you need to be accommodating to if you’re a fireman.

In this profession, you can’t have pet peeves. You can’t have things your way. Otherwise, you’re just a burden for yourself and others around you. This profession requires everyone to make all sorts of compromises and sacrifices, which is why being flexible is so vital for this profession.

Having the skills mentioned above is just a part of being eligible to become a firefighter. There are other checkboxes that you also need to tick before you can become one. These include an age limit (above 18 and below 29), a background check, a driver’s license, a U.S citizen, and a high school diploma.

Once those boxes are ticked off, you are eligible to sit for the NYC firefighter department exams, which is probably the hardest part of the whole process.

However, there are preparatory schools that help applicants to prepare for these exams and ensure good marks. If you or someone you know wants to become a firefighter and wants to prepare for the exam, then get in touch with Civil Service Success.

NYS civil service examWe are a New York-based preparatory institute that gives candidates appearing in the civil services exam the knowledge they need to prepare successfully and succeed under the guidance of excellent mentors and instructors. We have one of the best track records in the sanitation exams field.

Our services include the Suffolk NYC firefighter exam, NYC Court Officer Exam,  Police Test Preparation, Sanitation Officer exam, etc.

Contact us now and get yourself registered today.

 

  • Scroll to Top