Town of Normal Fire Department

A Firefighter/Paramedic with the Normal Fire Department is responsible for a broad range of duties, including fire suppression, fire prevention, communications, rescue operations, and providing advanced life support care to the sick and injured.

• Rescuing people from various fire-related and non-fire related emergencies; rescuing people from fire structures; rescuing people from tunnels, pipes, excavations, etc, by digging or removing objects; rescuing people from hazardous areas (chemicals, gases, and so forth); performing ice or water rescues.
• Handling and lifting injured persons; providing first aid and advanced life support, such as cleaning wounds, applying dressings, controlling bleeding, performing CPR, administering drugs, etc. within the range of Paramedic qualifications.
• Performing equipment maintenance or station maintenance; cleaning and washing station and living quarters; performing minor repair work at station; performing desk duty; answering incoming calls, maintaining cooperative relationships with other fire fighters and supervisors for station and department harmony.
• Keeping one's personal equipment in top working order and condition; inspecting, testing, maintaining and cleaning fire company equipment (protective equipment, rescue equipment, communications equipment, pumps, air tanks, hoses, and so forth); washing and hanging hose; maintaining tools and equipment; performing minor repair work as needed.
• Protecting people and property in areas where fire is in danger of spreading; recognizing possible areas of fire spread; closing off openings and spraying water to prevent spread; evacuating persons in exposed areas; protecting fire fighters with water streams and warning them of changes in conditions.
• Reacting quickly to alarms; getting into protective clothing, gathering and loading all required fire fighting apparatus; boarding fire vehicle as quickly as possible but with full attention to safety and thoroughness; traveling to the scene of the fire or emergency; locating the scene of the fire or emergency and securing a safe position.
• Interacting positively with the public in performing duties; calming emotionally distressed persons at fires or emergencies; courteously greeting and directing fire house visitors; performing fire safety education.
• Learning fire structures, hazards, routes, and so forth; attending classes in fire fighting, first aid, equipment, and so forth; keep up to date on job-related knowledge by reading, studying, and so forth; participating in drills; learning and practicing new methods; reading and studying literature related to the job; studying for professional advancement.
• Entering structures for fire fighting, search or emergency medical operations; forcing open doors and windows that are locked; battering down walls or doors as necessary using appropriate equipment.
• Locating fire hydrants or other water supply and hooking up hoses; laying hose lines, estimating length needed; carrying or dragging hose; deciding on proper hose attachments, proper types of water stream to use and best point of application; operating hose line, draining and reloading as necessary.
• Unloading ladders from apparatus; maneuvering/positioning ladders or aerial platforms; climbing up and down ladders; carrying victims or equipment on ladders.
• Correctly reading gauges and adjusting accordingly; doing fire ground calculations based on rule-of-thumb or other type of estimates such as reach of streams, volume of water needed, friction loss, and so forth.
• Responding to HAZ-MAT incidents such as leaks or spills of hazardous materials; identifying the hazardous substance and best ways to contain or neutralize it; observing safety procedures, department policies, and state and federal requirements in dealing with HAZ-MAT incidents.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

• Ability to understand and follow spoken directions, orders and requests; ability to understand conversations, comments, questions, training, and so forth.
• Ability to apply muscular force to lift, carry, drag, push or otherwise move objects; strength in the arms, hands, back, shoulders, and/or legs.
• Ability to get along with a variety of people, and work well as part of a group or team; accepting and tolerant of others, able to be acceptable by others.
• Ability to read, understand and properly apply job-related materials, such as training materials, manuals, directions for using equipment, and so forth.
• Ability to exert oneself physically over long periods of time without becoming overly fatigued or short of breath; ability to maintain a high level of physical performance even after a long period of exertion and stress.
• Ability to cope with the job's many physical dangers (fighting fires, climbing ladders, working at great heights, crawling in small places, dealing with fire, smoke, lack of oxygen, falling debris, and so forth).
• Ability to deal effectively with all those contacted; ability to properly handle upset and injured victims, to get people to cooperate; ability to present a positive image for the department.
• Good sense of direction, good judgment of distance and heights, always able to orient oneself and find one's way, even in new places.
• Sufficient basic math skills to add, subtract, multiply, divide, do fractions and decimals, make correct readings of gauges and dials and do basic "rule of thumb" calculations.
• Basic understanding of machinery and equipment; practical understanding or basic physical principles such as leverage, applied force, heat flow, center of gravity, and so on.
• Strong verbal communication skills and writing skills.
• Ability to perform under adverse weather and environmental conditions, such as heat, cold, wet, hazardous conditions, in a safe manner.
• Must possess, or be able to obtain, and maintain an Illinois Class "B" Driver's License.
• Certification by the State of Illinois as an EMT-Paramedic, or Certification by the State of Illinois as an EMT-Basic with the ability to successfully complete coursework for EMT-Paramedic certification within 18 months of hire as determined by the Fire Chief.
• Certification by the State of Illinois as a Certified Firefighter II/Basic Operations Firefighter, or the ability to obtain this certification within the first year of employment.