Emergency team seeks new heroes, new home
Job advertisements often seek ‘‘unflappable’’ applicants who can think on their feet under pressure. Rarely would those attributes seem more called for than in the upcoming recruitment round for the Nelson Tasman Civil Defence emergency response team NZ-RT2.
Members of the volunteer group can be called out at any time to disaster zones – which have recently included the Pigeon Valley wildfire and flood-hit areas during ex-tropical cyclone Gita – to help evacuate people or make sure they stay safe.
Frontline members could find themselves doing anything from searching buildings to manning roadblocks.
The group hoped to add six to eight members to the 19 currently on call 24/7 through its latest recruitment drive, which was due to get under way in earnest this week, section leader Jason Monopoli said.
People interested in signing up would have an interview, followed by a ‘‘gruelling’’ test of up to 24 hours of non-stop exercises, he said. Candidates required a ‘‘reasonable level of fitness’’, but it would mostly be a test of the kind of mental stamina that was needed for the job.
‘‘Not knowing where they’re going to go next, what they’re going to be doing, having the mental fortitude to keep pushing on. Having to nut out issues and problems while you’re doing the physical work, while you’re sort of 18 hours down the line.’’
The recruitment process was more rigorous than for most other volunteer agencies, so that people knew what they were signing up for, and to be sure the new recruits could be relied on when ‘‘stuff really hits the fan’’, Monopoli said. ‘‘We’re training for worst-case scenarios.’’
Members needed to be able to attend at least 70 per cent of the group’s fortnightly training sessions, he said, and be able to smile when the going got tough.
The group aims to have at least 22 frontline responders on call at all times, and holds a recruitment drive every two or three years, with the support of local businesses and agencies, to maintain that number.
The group is also seeking help to find a new home after it had to move out of the Nelson Fire Station, which has become a national fire training centre.
It hopes to hear from commercial property owners with an unused property of 120 to 150sq m, around the Stoke or Richmond areas, which they could donate for the new base, which would mainly be used for class teaching and storing two vehicles and two trailers.
People interested in becoming frontline or support members can email NZRT2recruitment@ncc.govt.nz.