Deli owner says fire role has been tonic
Sense of belonging and highly skilled training are among the benefits of being a retained firefighter
A Dunkeld shopkeeper said signing up for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service was just the tonic she needed.
Six years ago the village’s Scottish Deli manager Jane Saba stepped into the role of retained firefighter to protect her community.
Now Dunkeld Fire Station is looking to recruit more retained firefighters.
Jane moved to Dunkeld a decade ago and admits she had no burning desire to join the SFRS.
But that all changed after some time in the area.
She said: “I moved to Dunkeld 10 years ago and firefighting was never on my radar, but being fortunate to live in this stunning part of the country within a close knit and welcoming community, I got to know the crew at the station.
“One of them put the thought in my head that I could become a retained firefighter.
“That conversation got me thinking about how I could manage the deli in order to do both jobs. I wasn’t sure at first, but the answer is yes you can manage your time around it.”
Jane carries an emergency pager meaning she sometimes has to hot-foot it from the deli to respond to an emergency.
The local shopkeeper has found it very rewarding and is urging anyone looking for the “feel-good factor” in their work to consider signing up.
Retained firefighters often balance their main job with their SFRS work.
As well as responding to emergencies, retained firefighters carry out safety and prevention work such as visiting schools and installing smoke detectors in homes.
Jane added: “Working with SFRS keeps me fit and on my toes and it allows me to get more involved with the community.
“The retained fire service gives you a sense of belonging as well as providing you with highly skilled training across so many disciplines which in turn builds your overall confidence and ability.
“When the pager goes off your adrenaline starts to rush because you’re never quite sure what you’re going to be faced with and that’s when all the training and focus kicks in that’s what I love about this job.
“Although it wasn’t something that I’d ever thought about before, this role really was the tonic that I needed.”
Dunkeld Fire Station holds Drill Nights on Wednesdays 7-9pm. Anyone interested should go along for an informal chat about the role.
Alternatively contact Watch Commander Matt McLay at matthew.mclay@firescotland. gov.uk or 07971 138179.