You go, girl! IT’S IN LARA’S BLOOD
She’s from a family of volunteers
When Lara Hastings joined the Kaikohe Volunteer Fire Brigade at 22, her first call-out was a methamphetamine lab explosion. From 9.30pm until 5am the next day, she helped to secure the site and from that moment, the mum-ofone was hooked.
“You never know what you’re going to get,” says the Kaikohe medical receptionist, 28. “Sometimes it’ll be an accident or a fire up in the bush. We’re also first responders for the ambulance and get called out for a lot of cardiac arrests as well as suicides.”
Lara, who lives with her partner Kane Nankivell, 25, and their son Rome, eight months, says her job requires flexibility. “On New Year’s Eve one year, I got called out for a fire and we were there from 6pm until 6.30 in the morning,” she recalls. “It was a tricky job because we were trying to preserve a scene and needed to stay so it didn’t get messed with.”
She laughs, “We celebrated New Year’s with water and muesli bars!”
For Lara – whose dad, brother and sister are also volunteer firefighters – many of the call-outs have involved patients from her work, where she’s been employed for six years. “That does make it a little more difficult, but I take it in my stride,” she tells.
As well as family, who’ll take in baby Rome when her pager suddenly buzzes, Lara’s allowed to sprint off during work hours.
“We get sent the addresses and usually if it’s something fast like rubbish fires, I go and come back before it’s time to pick up Rome,” she says. “As a parent, you do go home and take into consideration that your baby is fine and someone else’s may not be. That’s always a bit heartbreaking and sometimes you need a couple of days off.”
But Lara carries on. “It can be hard, but I do it for my son and family. I know if it was one of them, and there weren’t enough people to turn out a truck, there could be a very different outcome.”