The Town of Shrewsbury is seeking interested and motivated individuals to become on-call firefighters.

Applicants will be required to complete an employment application and submit to a physical (including drug testing) prior to acceptance.

Applicants will be required to attend Fire Fighter I & II+ training and become certified by the Massachusetts Training Council. (200+ hours, Tuesday and Thursday evenings and one Saturday per month)

This is a paid-for-hours-worked position that includes a small annual stipend

Each month there is a three hour training session.

Any interested persons can come to Fire Headquarters at 11 Church Road and speak with the officer of the day. Applications are always available from the department secretary and by the link below. Please download, complete and drop off with the department secretary.

• On-Call Firefighter Application

Interested parties may also email scolby@th.ci.shrewsbury.ma.us with questions.

After twenty nine years of active service and fifteen years as a callman prior to that, I have decided to hang up my helmet. Now is a good time since I have my health and my strategic plan has been met. The stations are done and fully operational, the trucks are the most technologically advanced, the firefighters have vastly improved work skills, and I have successfully met my expectations. My wife and I plan to enjoy our new found freedom by traveling around the country and abroad.

I have been blessed with a great Town Manager, approving and trusting Selectmen and Finance Committees, knowledgeable town meeting members, and a department willing to accept change. All aspects of the department have been improved with the help of the firefighters, sometimes at their insistence. This has been a great run.  In January our fire department was given the best satisfaction rating of all town departments.

Thank you for recognizing and appreciating all our hard work.

Chief Gerald LaFlamme

As administrators of public safety, fire personnel must handle fires, motor vehicle accidents, collapses, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and medical emergencies. These events remain, as always, unscheduled and unpredictable. These incidents are time sensitive, life threatening, and labor intensive. You never know when they will occur, but when they do, you need lots of trained people immediately.

Safety and accountability of our firefighters is paramount in all that we do.  Improving our safety is an ongoing function. The department continues to move forward with the implementation of an Incident Management System. All members of the department are now trained in the application of this system. The result is increased safety, professionalism, increased proficiency, and most importantly, increased accountability of each other. It has been a costly program but the results are worth far more than the cost.

Project Alarm continues to be a great success. Nearly 500 homes in Shrewsbury have had smoke detectors installed free of charge by the firefighters.  The semi-annual signup takes place in cooperation with the Council on Aging at the Senior Center.  Seniors are encouraged to contact the fire department if they have no smoke detector protection or if they require battery change-outs. The program is free, due to the generous contribution of detectors by the State Department of Fire Services, batteries direct from the Energizer Bunny, and the cooperation of the firefighters.

Fire Prevention Education is an important function within the Fire Department. The Safety Awareness and Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) Program has been delivered by specially trained firefighters and officers, through the school system, to every pre-high-school student. Shrewsbury has seen juvenile fire-setting reduced nearly to zero and this program is what is responsible for that fact. The SAFE team also delivers age-appropriate safety classes to our seniors. Annually, the firefighters sponsor a cook-out at the Senior Center and serve up burgers, dogs, and safety lessons.

Weapons of Mass Destruction in the post 9-11 era has been the primary focus that we are increasing our awareness of and educating ourselves about. To this end we are working on interoperability both inside and outside the town and developing agreements with our neighboring towns as well. Shrewsbury has an active and dynamic Local Emergency Planning Committee including town directors, most department heads, business associates, experts in respective fields, and interested citizenry. In this area of the state, no one jurisdiction can handle a catastrophic event alone. This fundamental fact is driving neighboring towns to look toward regionalizing some asset inventories as well as training district/regional teams to respond with and operate the regional assets being assembled. Shrewsbury will be in the mix of these regional teams and in cases where our safety is particularly threatened will take the lead to see that the teams become operational.

• Caring for the Town of Shrewsbury residents, guests, and property through promoting public education
  
• Providing inspecting for the prevention of fires
  
• And mitigating any emergency situation presented to us