We know that a FIREMAN’s job is risky.  Yes, I still fondly remember the exciting Towering Inferno that I have watched so many times when I was young.

A fireman not only fights fire but also saves life and evacuates civilians during emergency.

What we might not know are the tens and hundreds of kilograms of equipment a fireman has to carry on his job, the split seconds decision on the course of actions he has to take during emergencies and the long hours of work he has to go through when he is on shift duty.

We learnt more in a visit to the Sengkang Fire Station a week ago.

[Located in a quiet residential area and there is not much crowd. Parking is easy, just at the front of the Fire Station.]

 The trip is really educational because, amongst others, we learnt about the different types of vehicles that are deployed to fight fire too:)

The boys had quite an experience sampling the “onboard experience” of the different vehicles.

Do you know that different vehicles are deployed to put out fire eg. forestation fire, high-rise building fire, domestic fire?

The “mini” at work. The first to arrive at emergency sites. On the left the PARAMEDIC and the right the “fire biker?”

Also, that there are many different types of equipments used to fight fires and some are SUPER HEAVY. 

Take note of the camera in the vehicle? This is the camera that captures your carplate number if you do not give way to fire engines.

I was informed by the officer, who showed us around, that he works 24 hours on each shift and then has 48 hours of rest next. Immediately, I was wondering whether they spend their rest time doing work-out or how then to be able to manage these heavy equipments in that short span of time and still having to stay very fast during emergency. 

I salute these silent heroes who risk their lives to save the lives of others. Thank you to Suhery who patiently and informatively brought us around the tour (though we were expecting more “demo” at first …haha…eg real putting out of small scale fires, a fireman in fireman suit) and for issuing the “fireman caps and coats” for kids.

No, there was no demo on the pole that we commonly watch on TV because it is definitely risky if there were a slip down that extremely tall pole.

If you are also keen to take a look at the inside of the fire station, the fire stations in Singapore (except for Jurong Island Fire Station) hold the Open House every Saturday morning from 9am - 11am.  Admission is Free.

I was told that different fire stations might have different vehicle types depending on the vicinity that they cover. So, we are certainly looking forward to the visit to other Stations:)

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