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'Retiring leaves void in my life'
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FIREFIGHTER claims leaving the job he describes as a 'well paid hobby' has left
a 'void' in his life.
Mick Hill (55) worked as a retained fire fighter in Crowle for 20 years but was
forced to retire after reaching the statutory age limit. But the father-of-two
claims he is still fit and would have loved to have been able to carry on. He
said: "I had to retire because of my age but I think I still have something
to offer. I feel fit and I could have helped the younger lads because you can't
beat experience." Mick, of Justice Lane, Crowle, started work as a fire
fighter in the town in February 1985. He carried out his fire fighting duties
alongside his job as a maintenance worker at the Independent Fertiliser Company
in Althorpe, where he has worked for 11 years.
Before this he was landlord of the Red Lion Pub in Crowle for seven
years. Mick said he used to work in the coal mining pits in Sheffield before he
moved to Crowle. He added: "When I worked in the pits I was part of the
mine rescue team. It was different to fire fighting because you would have to
get used to the large explosions but it did give me a bit of experience for
becoming a fire-fighter." During his two decades of service with Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, Mick has been called out to many incidents, some of which he claims were more difficult to deal with than others. "Road traffic accidents are always the worst because when they send for us there are difficulties getting people out of the vehicles and we have to cut them out. If there are children involved it is always hard to deal with," added Mick. But because of the difficulties all fire fighters face, the relationship between them is very strong, claims Mick. "I will miss the camaraderie with the lads. We have strong links with each other, especially considering the line of work we do and how much we depend on each other." AWARD: Mick Hill (right), who has retired after 20 years as a retained fire fighter at Crowle, is presented with a certificate of merit from Kev Rowbotham, risk manager of Humberside Fire and Rescue Service.
There
have been occasions when Mick has responded to a call and even rushed past a
neighbour’s house, which had a chimney fire.
He said: "I have gone flying out of the house, past my neighbour’s
house which had the chimney fire, and that is because I needed to get to the
station to get the proper equipment to be able to help effectively." Mick is married to Shirley and they have two children,
Michael (21) and Rebecca (24). Agreeing
to be a retained fire fighter does put a lot of pressure on the family, Mick
said, because he could be called out at any time.
He said: "It was tough because they would sometimes be disappointed,
especially if we had agreed to go out and then I was called out to a job and
would not get back for a couple of hours. This
job would have been impossible
without the support of my wife and my children."
Mick said he did not know what he would do with all his spare time. He joked: "Retiring has left a void but I am sure my wife will find something for decorating, something or me to do like that. I will not have an excuse not to go shopping anymore." He has two grandchildren and said he hoped to spend lots of time with them. A special award ceremony was held at the community hall in Crowle for both Mick and his colleague Kev Robinson, who retired on the same day after 23 years' service.
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