Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 326,100 people employed as firefighters in the United States. The median annual salary is $50,700. Entry level employees earn approximately $29,030 per year and senior employees earn approximately $81,640 per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime pay, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Select and attach hose nozzles, depending on fire type, and direct streams of water or chemicals onto fires.
• Maintain contact with fire dispatchers at all times to notify them of the need for additional firefighters and supplies, or to detail any difficulties encountered.
• Inspect buildings for fire hazards and compliance with fire prevention ordinances, testing and checking smoke alarms and fire suppression equipment as necessary.
• Take action to contain any hazardous chemicals that could catch fire, leak, or spill.
• Extinguish flames and embers to suppress fires, using shovels or engine- or hand-driven water or chemical pumps.
• Rescue victims from burning buildings, accident sites, and water hazards.
• Dress with equipment such as fire-resistant clothing and breathing apparatus.
• Assess fires and situations and report conditions to superiors to receive instructions, using two-way radios.
• Move toward the source of a fire, using knowledge of types of fires, construction design, building materials, and physical layout of properties.
• Respond to fire alarms and other calls for assistance, such as automobile and industrial accidents.
• Create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, using axes, chisels, crowbars, electric saws, or core cutters.
• Drive and operate fire fighting vehicles and equipment.
• Inspect fire sites after flames have been extinguished to ensure that there is no further danger.
• Position and climb ladders to gain access to upper levels of buildings, or to rescue individuals from burning structures.
• Orient self in relation to fire, using compass and map, and collect supplies and equipment dropped by parachute.
• Clean and maintain fire stations and fire fighting equipment and apparatus.
• Collaborate with other firefighters as a member of a firefighting crew.
• Patrol burned areas after fires to locate and eliminate hot spots that may restart fires.
• Collaborate with police to respond to accidents, disasters, and arson investigation calls.
• Participate in fire drills and demonstrations of fire fighting techniques.
• Maintain knowledge of current firefighting practices by participating in drills and by attending seminars, conventions, and conferences.
• Prepare written reports that detail specifics of fire incidents.
• Participate in physical training activities to maintain a high level of physical fitness.
• Protect property from water and smoke, using waterproof salvage covers, smoke ejectors, and deodorants.
• Inform and educate the public on fire prevention.
• Salvage property by removing broken glass, pumping out water, and ventilating buildings to remove smoke.

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