Ahhh look at this fellas - there's alot of love in this room
Yep have to stick up for Zorro for the most part here for a changer - he certainly mentioned on numerous occassions that he values the good old retainers.
On the subject of lowering standards for retained personnel to atract new recruits I happen to think this isn't a bad thing.
Theres a lot of people who wanted to join the brigade wholetime for all the right reasons, but cant due to perhaps sometimes just being borderline on eyesight or some other condition.
To those people doing the job was their dream and being retained allows them to forfil that dream. Im talking people who are serious about the job here , not some joe who just wants to play with fire engines or look the hero.
Whilst wholetime personell do indeed get more training I have to say the standard of the retained crews on our brigade patch is awe inspiring - yes they only have 2hours a week training, but he has to be said that operational experience can really bring a crew up to scratch, you find retained crews are very experienced as well as their wholetime colleagues.
Anyway this perhaps needs a new topic if we are to discuss this further.
Our retained colleagues do a truly fantastic job. Whilst they dont receive the training they truly need, I firmly believe these guys and girls do the job proffesionally , safely and with one thing imprinted on their minds - to save life.
Now ill stop making my over the top dramtic speech and well and truly get of my soap box
Alpha three one - out!
