RCR Ages

[Mike]

Something that has been spoken about many times before.

In the end it takes a bit of thought and discussion. After 18 (as this can apply to anyone really), then that discussion should be between the officer and member. If under 18 then include the parents as well.

There is no hard and fast rule, but in the end, the aim is to expose as few people as possible to any type of incident. Consultation and education is the only means of decided when is the best time to start, and if people are up to the task, no matter what the age...

[mack]

its ver ystrange really the age stuff in CFS...


you can become a firefighter at 16 (cadets or not), however i have always felt it should be 18... not necessarily becasue of maturity, as i know 16 year olds that are much more mature than there years... but because of the decisions made by them that can have lots of complications, legal age for guns, drinking, smoking, voting, credit cards (i believe), etc etc is all 18 when we are considered 'adult' so why 16 for CFS?

another thing about age limits that irks me a bit is, for BA you must be 18. Seems odd that you can join the service at 16 and go to housefires, car fire, rubbish fires etc, but are not eligible for respiratory protection until you turn 18..

[Zippy]

12 to 16 cadets
16 above - Level 1
18 above - more training?

What was great to see when i did BFF1 is a few cadets doing the training before being able to get on the truck at age 16.  I believe a lot is done to prepare these young members (well im not to much older either lol) for responding to jobs.

[mack]

12 to 16 cadets
16 above - Level 1
18 above - more training?

i believe you can do everthing except BA before turning 18. however not having BA accred excludes you from HAZMAT, CFB etc

[bittenyakka]

you can go to house fires without BA if you are over 18.

[backburn]

12 to 16 cadets
16 above - Level 1
18 above - more training?

i believe you can do everthing except BA before turning 18. however not having BA accred excludes you from HAZMAT, CFB etc

I thought that if you do not have BA you can still respond to hazmat there would be jobs for them to do to help.

[mack]

you can go to whatever incidents your brigade has as soon as your a member with level 1...


i am referring to levels of training being dependant on age

[filtered]

I believe that there was a policy a few (possibly up to five) years ago that was put out to brigades that it is recommended that people under 18 do not attend vehicle accidents, but it is up to the brigade captain and can be implemented on a case-by-case basis.

Several brigades decided that it would be best to implement a blanket rule that no under 18s go to vehicle accidents...

[rescue5271]

Look its a very hard call,I know of some adults who find it hard at MVA'S but yet again i know some young members 16 to 18 who have seen death in rural areas for years being sheep or cattle or human... Sure it is the brigade captain or officer who says yes or know.I dont have a problem taking a 17 yo to aMVA and putting them on traffic control but sorry would not have them working in the rescue zone.....HQ can make up as many rules as they like but they need to remember that in a rural or country area we dont have RCR back up close at hand we dont have the number's so we can pick this member over that member to get on the appliance be it rescue or fire cover....

[Zippy]

something quite simple.   Fire Cover outside hot zone, rescue in the hot zone.  Only when fire/smoke present should fire cover enter the hotzone. (charged line and dry chem ready).

[vr_driver]

back to the original question and an earlier topic.

My view is 18 should be the minimum age. You can drive a car, buy smokes, gamble, buy grog at that age. That's the age you are an adult in the eyes of the law. Let that be the age.

The other thing I read, was about cutting glass.
I've used these glass cutters.
http://www.yourtasmania.com/rescuesnips/

They create bit dust, but they are really good.

[rescue5271]

I think the answer is simple dont you have to be 18 to do the RCR course??? if so the 18 would be a good starting point......

[Alan (Big Al)]

back to the original question and an earlier topic.

My view is 18 should be the minimum age. You can drive a car, buy smokes, gamble, buy grog at that age. That's the age you are an adult in the eyes of the law. Let that be the age.

The other thing I read, was about cutting glass.
I've used these glass cutters.
http://www.yourtasmania.com/rescuesnips/

They create bit dust, but they are really good.

Thanks for that!!!

As for the dust, shaving cream put where your going to cut stops the glass dust.

[mack]

I think the answer is simple dont you have to be 18 to do the RCR course??? if so the 18 would be a good starting point......

18 to do RCR, 18 to do BA (and thererfore HAZMAT), should be 18 to become a firefighter and responder full stop.

[Gilly]

Also i think the issue is more a legal one than mental maturity. If someone is going to be affected by a severe exposure at 16, does that mean that at 18 they are all of a sudden ok with it? No.
At 18, a person is no longer under the legal guardianship of someone else and can make thier own descisions and is responsible for their actions.
For example, if a 16 year old is exposed to a bad situation and has lasting effects, they could probably hold a legal argument that under a duty of care, their guardian (CFS Officer i assume) should not have exposed them to it and is therefore liable. If they are 18, then it is their responsibility legally, not someone elses. Same with injuries, death etc.
That is also part of the reason why there is an age restriction on the courses that require physical "higher risk" activities with potential for injury.

[Stefan KIRKMOE]

Did the course at 16..... No regrets, no issues... down to the individual really...

[Knackers]

Age of RCR FF's/SES Personal? Interesting. I am not a member of SES or CFS, and in my employment have been to plenty of MVA's but so far no fatal ones (like to keep it that way, as been close).

There are some good points from both views (under 18 or over 18), but I would have to say 18yo as a minimum.

For one, a lot of MVA's that we (emergency services) attend involve young people, especially in hills and country regions, and the last thing anyone want's do be doing (besides a major mva or trauma in first place) is attending an mva where they know the patient(s), and for a 16yo to be attending to a friend or classmate of same age would be horrific, as dealing with their death (without being at the incident) will be hard enough.

I also have to agree with Gilly on the legal view point, although I am not sure how something like that would stand up in court, but it is worth noting.

But I suppose, given the role as a FFer etc, what's not to say a 16yo is not going to attend a house fire or car fire or bush/scrub fire where there is not serious injuries or even deaths? Maybe 18yo should be the minimum, maybe not.

I know I have kinda contraindicated myself, but a good debate point maybe.

However, I think it is fantastic that cadets and 16yo's are involved in community organisations such as CFS/SES and not to forget SLSC's as pulling someone from the water and dealing with incidents on the beach can be full on as well. It is a pity more youngsters (gee I feel old using that word now) are not involved in community organisations. It allows great character building and you gain valuable life skills, and keeps you out of trouble.

Anyway, only my views, I guess I can not make a clear decision on which side of fence I sit.

Catch Ya