A RECENT campaign by the Dorset and Wilts Fire Service which urges people to become an on-call firefighter, resulted in me, Isaac Garg, trying my hand at a number of drills that prospective firefighters would face.

The inter-county fire service is urging people to become an on-call firefighter, to go alongside their normal job.

Potential firefighters would be able to balance on-call shifts with their job, and get paid hourly at the same rate as full-time firefighters.

The training centre, in Devizes, has run four Have A Go days in the past 12 months, which more than 90 people took part in.

On-call support officer, Justin French, said: "The key message for this is that anyone can do it.

"Men and women are encouraged to try out, and you don't even need to be superhuman fit.

"We've seen a massive spike in applications after the Have A Go days so hope more will join our ranks."

To see what it takes to be an on-call firefighter, I took part in one of the training days myself which included climbing ladders, crawling through narrow spaces with breathing equipment and carrying heavy tools up and down.

Under instruction from the tuition team, I was also able to smash the windows of a car and cut open its doors to learn how to correctly enter one in an accident.

Crawling through the narrow course, which has to be completed in a set time to pass, with a blindfold and heavy equipment on my back was no easy job, and neither was the heavy carrying fitness test which left me exhausted, but feeling satisfied, by the end.

Learning to be an on-call firefighter may be tough, but I imagine it would be rewarding to use those skills in the real world, so why not go along to a Have A Go day and try for yourself?

The fire service is planning to hold four more application days next year, and more information is at www.dwfire.org.uk.