According to Tse Shau-lung, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong Fire Services Department Staffs General Association, now is a good time to look for a job at the Fire Services Department (FSD).

With many current personnel having joined the department at the end of the ’70s, a significant number of staff will be retiring in the next few years, and vacancies will have to be quickly filled.

Director of Fire Services Chan Chor-kam adds that the department also expects to hire personnel for newly created posts in the future.

Being a fireman demands excellent physical fitness as well as good mental strength. They have to remain calm in dangerous and life-threatening situations and often have to comfort victims.

The FSD also demands self-discipline and team spirit. In the past, whole training classes have been punished because of the unsatisfactory performance of a single classmate.