After a half-century in the hot seat, Ken Wilson is not yet ready to jump out of the fire.
The Port Chalmers volunteer firefighter recently marked 50 years of firefighting in Dunedin's harbourside communities, becoming the 130th member of the New Zealand Fire Service to receive the distinguished 50-year service medal.
Mr Wilson (76) said he joined the fire brigade to give back to his community and 50 years on, his passion for volunteering was burning as brightly as ever.
''I have been on the harbourside all my life,'' he said.
''I was born and bred at Ravensbourne and when I got married, we moved to Sawyers Bay.
''I just love the community, I love all the people in the community.''
He became a volunteer firefighter at the age of 25, joining the Ravensbourne Volunteer Fire Brigade in September 1964.
After serving with the brigade for eight years, he transferred to Port Chalmers Volunteer Fire Brigade in 1973 after moving to Sawyers Bay.
He has no intentions of calling time on firefighting and is still keen to give back to the community.
''The service has changed a great way,'' he said.
''We are now fire rescuers, as they call it.''
Mr Wilson has his first aid certification and spends much of his time as a medical first responder.
''We don't get fire nowadays,'' he said.
''I have hardly been to a fire for a long time because people are just more educated and the equipment's better.''
The equipment he wore to fight fires had also drastically changed, he said.
''When I first joined we had a bunker coat, a pair of trousers, a pair of boots, a helmet and that was it.''
It was a far cry from the lightweight, safe and durable material their uniform was made from now. Firefighters also had access to breathing apparatus and cutting-edge technology in their appliances and equipment.
He said he still remembered his first fire - a call to a chimney fire in De Lacy St.
''We used to get a couple dozen chimney fires a winter,'' he said.
''It just doesn't happen now.''
The largest fire he attended was a structure fire at Miller and Tunnage, a shipbuilding yard, in Port Chalmers in the 1980s.
''That was a huge structure fire,'' he said.
''It was really going.''
Despite the danger of some of the situations he found himself in, he had never been fearful, he said.
''Not me - no, I'm always ready.''
The friendship and camaraderie of fellow firefighters stood out in his memories of his time with the Fire Service, he said.
His long service was achieved only with the support of his wife, Gwenyth, and his family, as he often rushed from family events to the sound of the fire siren.
Additional reporting
- Stacey Bryant
