AS water sprayed high into the air and kids clambered across big red trucks, the Armidale fire station could easily have been confused with a fun park.
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At the Fire Station Open Day, more than 450 residents came to have a look at the gear, some arriving in their own.
“There were a couple of young future firefighters in the mix, one of them came in his own uniform which was very good,” Armidale station commander Steve McWhirter said.
“The idea behind open day is to allow the community to come and have a look at the fire station, to look at all of the appliances and the equipment and to get a bit of an idea what goes on behind the scenes and what we do as firefighters.”
With the fire engines out and all the pockets open, attendants were able to handle the equipment and look around the trucks.
One of the fire hoses was also set up out the back for the kids.
Mr McWhirter said the day was about creating relationships with the community.
“It puts the community at ease that we’re not there to hinder them in any way, we’re there to help them,” he said.
“It shows them that we are human as well and we’re there to do a job.”
The open day was also an opportunity for people to ask questions about fire safety.
Mr McWhirter fielded a number of questions on smoke alarms from some of the 450 people who attended.
“It’s always fun to see the smiles on the kids faces when they get to climb all over the fire engine, when they get a balloon, we also had little red hats they could take – that’s a satisfying part of it,” he said.
“We even had people coming and having a look at the gear and fielding their questions is rewarding as well.
“We also had at least one chap who was interested in joining, he asked quite a few questions about what we do, how it all works, what you require to become a retained firefighter.”
Red plastic fire hats, stickers, tattoos and fire safety pamphlets were also given out the attendants.
The open day took place on Saturday May 20, and was free to attend.