More than 1 800 hopefuls spent last week trying out for the City of Cape Town’s 120 seasonal firefighting jobs, the City said yesterday.
The additional manpower is crucial to fighting an average of nearly 7 500 vegetation fires every summer, mayoral committee member for safety and security; and social services JP Smith said.
The City’s fire and rescue service has now identified potential candidates for its seasonal firefighter posts, to help strengthen defences against vegetation fires between November and April.
From Monday to Friday, nearly 2 000 hopefuls passed through the City’s Ndabeni facility to try and clear the first hurdle - a basic fitness assessment - which included “a reach test”, a 2.4km run within a prescribed time, 30 sit-ups in 60 seconds, 30 push-ups in 60 seconds, and a 50kg dead load carry over 100 metres.
“This fitness assessment is standard, even for candidates seeking permanent employment with the City’s safety and security directorate. On paper it might not seem that daunting, but I would venture a guess that many people would struggle to complete the tasks.
“I want to congratulate those candidates who persevered and commiserate with those who didn’t make it this time around,” Smith said.
A total of 846 candidates will now need to complete written and behavioural assessments.
The successful candidates will start their firefighting training on November 1.