THE last 12 months were the busiest, to date, for Crediton firefighters.

The retained crews at the two-appliance station attended 614 incidents, about 400 of which were Co-Responder calls to medical emergencies prior to the arrival of the Ambulance Service.

More than 200 were to attend fires, road accidents and other incidents, mainly in the town and surrounding area but sometimes, further afield, including Exeter, North Devon and across the county and on "stand-by" at other local stations.

Some have also been to major incidents and fires with many other fire crews.

The Co-Responder service operates to support the Ambulance Service. Medically-trained firefighters go as a first aid service prior to the arrival of paramedics.

This could be for any type of medical emergency and has been particularly valuable given that the Ambulance Service has been particularly stretched due to financial constraints.

Mark Smith, watch manager, Crediton Fire Station, said: "This has been the busiest year we have ever had.

"We have attended 614 incidents and up to 400 of those were Co-Responder calls.

"We have a dedicated team of 23 personnel here and thankfully we have had a few new recruits join during the past year which has helped to swell our ranks.

"In addition, we have specialist support vehicles here and recently we took delivery of a new welfare pod, which has canteen and toilet facilities, which we can take to incidents as required."

Mr Smith thanked businesses which permitted on-call or retained firefighters to attend incidents after being released from their work.

He particularly thanked Tesco and Adams Home Hardware who gave staff permission to attend and respond to emergency calls during working time.

He said this was a "valuable" contribution to the community for which the businesses should be commended.

He added that Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service was looking for more people in the Crediton community to become retained firefighters.

He said: "No previous experience of fire fighting is necessary for this role – the ideal prospective firefighter starts with a commitment to the community, a positive attitude and a good level of fitness.

"This is an opportunity for men and women who live and/or work within five minutes response time to the fire station in Charlotte Street, Crediton, to potentially save lives in fire, flood and road traffic emergencies."

The watch commander explained that being on-call means that you provide a level of cover whilst at work or at home. When you are needed your pager will alert you to attend the station.

People who can give cover during the day are particularly needed. Many people have primary occupations whilst on-call - either employed or self-employed.

He said the fire service has examples of employees in factories, shops, takeaways and restaurants who are on-call firefighters.

To be considered you need to be over 18 and have a good level of fitness and strength, but sometimes people overestimate the levels required and this can deter them (particularly women) from applying. The service will give people advice and help in preparing for both the written and practical assessments.

The fire service says that equally, living with a disability is not automatically a barrier to operational fire fighting; it depends on the nature of the disability.

Once you are recruited full training is provided. DSFRS is an inclusive employer and is working towards a workforce which reflects the local community.

If you are interested, call in at Crediton Fire Station on a Tuesday evening from 7pm or contact Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service on 01392 872294 or visit the website for more information at: http://www.dsfire.gov.uk">www.dsfire.gov.uk .