Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service is seeking new recruits for its retained firefighter team at Wheathamsptead.

Fires, road crashes and animal rescues are just some of the incidents the successful applicants will deal with.

The retained firefighters are paid to provide an on-call service responding to emergency calls in the same way as whole-time firefighters, using the same appliances and equipment.

Wheathampstead watch commander Tracey Folds, who was one of the 150 firefighters that attended Buncefield in 2005, said: "Retained firefighters are a key part of the fire and rescue service and they come from a cross section of our community.

"They are trained and paid for responding, and do the same job as wholetime firefighters.

"Being a retained firefighter is not just about attending incidents whenever you’re required.

"It's about teamwork and helping the local community.

"These are ordinary people doing an extraordinary job."

Retained applicants can be male or female and should live or work within four minutes travel time from the Marford Road station, allowing them to respond promptly to emergency calls.

They must be available for at least 90 hours a week and will receive full firefighter training.

They are also expected to attend training sessions one night per week and receive a retaining fee, while additional payments are made for any courses or incidents they attend.

The current team of ten in Wheathampstead continue to hold down normal jobs however remain on call around the clock. A minimum of four staff are on call at one time.

Retained firefighters are also trained in specialist skills and can be called upon to provide these skills at major incidents anywhere in the county.

Watch Commander Folds, who works as a community safety officer for the fire service and has been a retained firefighter for 20 years, added: "Our retained fire-fighters come from all walks of life, including builders, factory, shop and office workers and company directors.

"We welcome inquiries from all sections of the community and the successful applicants will be paid a monthly retainer fee plus additional for training hours and call outs.

"It's also a chance to become a crucial member of a highly trained and tight-knit team. It is a great chance to learn transferrable skills.

"If you live or work within four minutes of the fire station and would like to find out more, then we invite you to come along to our recruitment evening.

"You will be able to meet other retained firefighters who will be happy to answer any questions and it will be a great opportunity to find out what the job involves."

Anyone interested in finding out more can attend the recruitment information evening on Tuesday, March 3, at 7pm at the station Marford Road.

To find out more, visit: www.hertsdirect.org/rds