Recruitment

Interested in Becoming a Volunteer Firefighter? Here's how!

What does it take to become a volunteer firefighter with the Grayson Kentucky Fire Department? First and foremost is a willingness and dedication to serve others in our community. Though most volunteers train to provide emergency services, there are other opportunities to serve with the department. Some non-firefighting positions might be assisting with preventive and routine maintenance on fire apparatus and equipment, or a videographer to provide incident scene video and still images for use in training and after action reporting. You may have experience in teaching or public speaking and can help with fire safety awareness programs or enjoy helping in community outreach like our Shop with a Firefighter program. It takes much more than just trained emergency service personnel to keep the department running.

Grayson Fire Department Membership requirements:

Must live within five (5) road miles of the Grayson Fire Station*
Submit an Application for Membership with the following items

Photocopy of your Kentucky Motor Vehicle Operators License

Photocopy of your High School Diploma or GED

Photocopy of your DD214 if you served in the U.S. Military

Complete felony conviction record application for the background investigation

Submit copies of certificates and training records for any prior fire service

Submit copies of certificates and training records for any medical training

You may obtain an application for membership at the fire station.

*(exceptions considered on a case by case basis)

What's the process? After you complete the above requirements your application is reviewed by the membership officer and the background investigation is started. After the application and background investigation information is completed the membership officer submits the information to the membership committee for review. The membership committee will then make a recommendation to accept or reject the application and the applicant will be notified in writing. If the applicant is approved by the membership committee the applicant is classified as a probationary recruit firefighter for 90 days from the approval date. The probationary recruit can be dismissed for any reason during this time, with or without cause. After the 90 day probationary period the membership committee will submit the recruit to the membership for a vote of approval. If approved by a majority of the membership you become a full member of the Grayson Volunteer Fire Department.

After acceptance as a probationary recruit firefighter you must complete 20 hours of initial training before you are allowed to respond to any emergency calls. The only exception to this requirement is if you have previous firefighter training (documented) and it has been approved by the fire chief. After your 20 hours of training you will be allowed to respond 'on truck' to emergency calls. However, you cannot respond to the fire station with your private vehicle under emergency conditions (red lights and siren) until you have:

Completed your probationary period and become a full member of the department
Completed the required drivers training
Obtained approval from the fire chief by receiving a red light and siren permit. This permit must be kept in the vehicle at all times.

You will remain as a recruit firefighter until completion of 150 hours of firefighter training. After successfully completing 150 hours of state approved firefighter training you will receive a certificate indicating your status as a Firefighter I. After 400 hours of training you will receive your Firefighter II level. There are many opportunities to train in many different areas and is only limited by your interest and time.

Being a volunteer on the Grayson Fire Department is a great opportunity to learn but more importantly to serve the citizens of Grayson and Carter County.

Still interested? For more information you can contact us via email or at the administrative number listed above.