Volunteer Fire Departments

• Pages: 635-692
• Author: Raymond S. Diraddo

VOLUNTEER FIRE

DEPARTMENTS

CHAPTER 12

VOLUNTEER FIRE

DEPARTMENTS

VOLUNTEER FIRE

DEPARTMENTS

(This page intentionally left blank.)

VOLUNTEER FIRE

DEPARTMENTS

12-3 Volunteer Fire Departments §12:30

§12:10 GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS

AND STANDARDS

The board of re commissioners should carefully

consider the personnel requirements of their re com-

pany to maximize training and modern equipment. The

reghter’s task is to prevent re, contain it when it

breaks out, and protect lives and property. Sound train-

ing, eective discipline, and modern equipment combine

to safeguard the community.

A re company is only as good as the people who

sta it. The general requirements for membership in a

volunteer company are outlined in the company’s con-

stitution and bylaws, the rules and regulations of the

board of re commissioners, and the criteria outlined

in New York State Law.

§12:10.1 Residence

In general, subject to some exceptions, the

individual applicant must meet the basic residence

requirements to become a member of a re company

or continue as a member. Town Law §176-b.

To determine whether a person meets the residency

requirements, Town Law §176-b, the term “resident”

has been construed by the New York Attorney General

as meaning “domicile.” Domicile requires an intention

to make a residence a permanent and xed home. A

temporary residence for a temporary purpose, with the

intent to return to the old home once that purpose has

been completed, leaves the domicile unchanged.

A person may have several residences but can only

have one domicile. The actual place where a person

is residing is not always the domicile. It is necessary

to decide based on the facts of each case. Any person

elected to membership as a volunteer member of a re

company shall be a resident of the re district or of

territory outside the re district which the re depart-

ment or re company aords re protection unless the

non-resident meets the criteria of being able to provide

service as a non-resident.

§12:10.2 Essentials

There are many essentials needed in a modern

reghter. Physical and medical requirements are

just the beginning. The modern reghter must be

able to do the job, understand and absorb the rigorous

training, and be in good physical condition. The pro-

spective volunteer member should have a high school

education or possess an equivalency certicate. The

prospective reghter should be mentally alert, will-

ing and able to learn, in good health, and able to pass

a rigid physical examination.

Most re departments have found it advantageous

to require members to have a valid motor vehicle oper-

ator’s license. Other required skills, knowledge, and

abilities are generally spelled out in any typical speci-

cation for reghters.

The necessary ngerprint clearance, credit, and

character investigation will be detailed under the work

of the membership committee. A criminal background

and arson check is required.

§12:20 APPLICATION PROCESS

The rst step for a prospective member should

be to ll out an application form. This form should

describe the applicant’s personal information. Cer-

tain information may not be asked of the applicant.

Care should be taken to ensure that the application

process follows New York State Human Rights Law.

Once the application has been properly lled out,

the prospective member’s name is forwarded to the

membership committee.

§12:30 RECRUITMENT

Recruitment in Volunteer Fire Companies should

not be a haphazard undertaking. Membership in re

companies should be based upon a genuine interest in

the Fire Service. Careful attention should be paid to the

applicant’s actual abilities or qualications.

Membership in a Fire Company is a serious respon-

sibility not only to the community in which a reghter

serves but also to the Fire Service as a whole. A man

who “fails” as a reghter not only creates a wrong

impression against the Company itself but also discred-

its the Fire Service as a whole.

Every member of a Fire Company should be on

the lookout for prospective members who would make

good additions when vacancies occur. Members should

always make a concerted eort to keep the Company

at its full strength.

A prospective member should not be accepted

without question just because he was a re depart-

ment member of a re company in another locality.

Since standards vary from department to department,

any applicant should be investigated very carefully to

determine his performance record in all past associa-

tions with the Fire Service. Unfortunately, having been

a member of another re department or re company,

there is no assurance that the applicant is a well-trained

reghter. Since a volunteer cannot be a member of

more than one re department, it is advisable to obtain

a letter of resignation from the former department.