Firefighting service a family affair
Decades of service a family tradition for Ross Fleet
In the late 1960s teenager Ross Fleet was finishing his high school years in New Plymouth and looking at life ahead.
He gave farming a go, then joined the Patea Freezing Works where his father and grandfather had worked. Another family tradition was firefighting and soon Fleet was also a member of the Patea Volunteer Fire Brigade.
He enjoyed the volunteer work, so when the Wellington brigade started recruiting for paid firefighters in 1971 he applied and was accepted.
The following year he moved to Rotorua and transferred to the Rotorua brigade as a paid firefighter, and apart from a brief break, has been a firefighter ever since - now part of the Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) based out of Hamilton and Thames.
This year Fleet ticked off another family tradition - earning his second Gold Star / 50-year medal for a total of 52 years of service, joining the esteemed ranks of his grandfather Charlie Carey and brother Mike Fleet.
In fact, the firefighting family can count 450 plus years of volunteer and professional service, including 11 Gold Stars recipients (25 years) and three Double Gold Star (50 years) recipients.
It started with his greatgrandfather Matthew Carey, a founding member and chief of the Patea Fire Brigade who served from 1884 to 1924.
His son Charlie was the first family 50-year medal holder, serving in Patea from 1908 to 1958. He was also president of the United Fire Brigades Association in 1940.
Others to volunteer for Patea Fire Brigade on his mother’s side were Fleet’s great-uncle Arch Carey (30+ years), uncle Matthew Carey (43 years), uncle George Cosford (30+ years) and cousin Cameron Cosford (7 years).
On his father’s side, his grandfather Tom Fleet was a member of the Lower Hutt Fire Brigade from 1906 until 1941. He died from pneumonia as a result of fighting a large fire in a slipper factory.
Fleet’s great-uncle Ben Fleet was a member of the Petone Fire Brigade from 1912-1945 and his father Milton served 39 years for the Patea Fire Brigade from 1945-1974.
Fleet’s eldest brother Jim also joined Patea, then volunteered at Kawerau before becoming a paid firefighter in Kawerau and then in Tauranga in the mid-70s, serving 37 years, and his brother Mike served 51 years between 1968 and 2022 as a paid firefighter in Porirua and Whanganui and a volunteer at Kawerau and Kerikeri.
Fleet’s son Shaun also served for a year as a volunteer firefighter in Ngaruawahia, where Fleet also turned out to support the local brigade when he was living there.
“I have had a fabulous career,” says Fleet.
“I have no regrets, it has been amazing.”
Unsurprisingly, when Fleet was first married in 1974 his wife Sheryl’s father, Lawrence Nicholson, was serving as Chief Fire Officer of Mamaku Fire Brigade, near Rotorua.
Nicholson was also a Gold Star recipient and Fleet describes him as a great mentor and wonderful fatherin-law.
It was at this time in Rotorua that Fleet undertook his senior firefighting qualifications and in 1978 moved to Hamilton station to take a promotion.
He stayed in the role until 2001 when he resigned to give farming another go and start his own business.
It was during this time he volunteered in Ngaruawahia.
In 2007 Fleet rejoined FENZ as a fire safety officer in Hamilton and then became a risk reduction adviser. Since 2012 he has been based in Thames.
Fleet says after 38 years of reacting to emergencies he now had a proactive role, one he thoroughly enjoyed.
He developed strong bonds with both paid and volunteer staff and says working with volunteers especially gave him a great appreciation of the sacrifices they make.
At one stage Fleet worked with 27 brigades and 587 firefighters and officers in the former Eastern Waikato Fire Area, all volunteers.
A merger of areas in 2021 brought the greater Waikato into one region, with Fleet assisting in bringing seven fulltime risk reduction advisers and three community readiness and recovery officers into a functioning and effective community risk management team.
“I love my role now,” he says. “Part of it is prevention and education and a part is fire investigation.”
The prevention role involves the built environment and making sure buildings and equipment are up to fire safety standards.
The readiness and recovery role involves education, promoting safety through public events and workshops and delivering the Firewise programme.
Fire investigation is a big part of firefighting.
Fleet says his job is to investigate fires and report the findings because it adds to the knowledge around fire safety and prevention.
Investigators also report possible criminal activity for further investigation by the police.
“Our findings also help identify patterns which might be of concern, such as the number of fires that involve lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries,” says Fleet.
“We can see there is a global issue as a result of the increasing use of these batteries and we can help develop awareness programmes and safety processes to minimise the harmful effects.”
Fleet says another risk already identified is the upcoming hot, dry summer.
“I work on the Coromandel and we know this is a significant risk, so we need to mitigate now,” he says.
This means putting restrictions in place, education and public awareness.
“People need to know they have to apply for a permit before they can light a fire,” he says.
Another area of concern is the use of fireworks.
Fleet says many people may not realise that if fireworks cause damage, recovery of any loss is possible.
He says all public displays by fireworks professionals have to be approved by FENZ to ensure they are reasonable and safe.
As the year ends Fleet is now looking forward to his retirement - an 18-month planned exit strategy that will see him complete his service on June 28, 2024.
“I enjoy my role, but I also have a plan that will see me busy in my retirement,” he says.
“I have assisted to bring a new team of risk advisors through the system and I’m satisfied it is the right time for me to move on.”
Fleet plans to move home to Taranaki where he has a 100-year-old church waiting for his attention. He is going to convert it into a retirement home for himself and his partner Kay Worth.
He’s certain he won’t be short of work and is looking forward to the new challenge, but he also realises what his retirement means.
“I feel quite humbled by my forebears’ history and am very aware that at the cessation of my career lies the end of a great family heritage with the New Zealand Fire Service.”