Firefighter slammed for leaping into action mid haircut

A DEDICATED firefighter who left a barber half-way through having his haircut to answer an emergency call has endured a barrage of criticism on social media rather than praise.

The retained firefighter at Buckfastleigh Fire Station has been pictured on its Facebook page after responding to a call after a message alert came through while he was in a barber’s.

The post said: “To be a retained firefighter takes a certain type of person, to respond to your alerter 24 hours a day, seven days a week takes dedication, stopping what your doing no matter what! However, leaving a haircut half way through when your alerter goes off is on another level.”

The first comment though, and some others, aired their views that they believed he was far from heroic. The first response said: “Who are these people that can’t bear to book off for 30 minutes?! Jeez.”

It prompted the fire station to respond saying: “Probably the same people who keep the appliance available when it would be easier to book off but doing so would take the appliance off the run, so they stay on call for the community in which they live and work meaning we’re all safer and the taxpayer gets the service they deserve, that’s who!”

It wasn’t just the firefighter who was criticised but also the barber. One person asked: “Who starts a haircut in the middle?”

The retained firefighter’s unfinished haircut