It was a proud day for families and friends who braved the cold to see their loved ones at Humberside Fire and Rescue Service's on-call firefighters passing out parade.
It was the culmination of weeks of hard work as the 20 new retained (on-call) firefighters collected their certificates from Chief Fire Officer Chris Blacksell who praised their dedication and commitment over the intensive course. He also paid special tribute to the trainers and particularly the families of the new recruits who have supported their loved ones in pursuing this rewarding career to serve their local communities:
"Every Firefighter plays a critical role in keeping our communities and each other safe. The pride and satisfaction in serving the community and being part of this incredible team cannot be underestimated."
Group Manager Phil Leake welcomed the guests before they took their places in the marquee to watch a display of hose skills, ladder work and casualty rescue from height. Master of ceremonies WM Si Latham explained each action and the capabilities of the vehicles in the drill to the guests. Whilst the recruits changed into their presentation uniforms, the Prostate Cancer engine pulled in alongside the Pride in Hull pump for guests to look around.
Stars of the show, as always, were the K9 Fire Investigation dogs who gave a demonstration of their accelerant detection skills. Handlers Jon Willingham and Mick Shooter explained the process of training the dogs, how they can help fire investigations and introduced their very own 'new recruit' Sox.
The parade was the culmination of two separate courses. Silver axes for the best recruit from each course were awarded to George Nadin and Craig Needham.