Fire Fighter

Job Summary

Controls and extinguishes fires, provides emergency medical care to the public, protects life and property, and maintains equipment as an employee of the City of Dearborn Heights. The employees of the City are required to serve citizens and customers in a tactful, courteous manner; establish and maintain good working relationships with staff, directors, elected officials, and general public. 

Nature of Work Duties

• Drives and operates fire apparatus and equipment, responds to fire alarms, emergency medical incidents, and other emergency calls.  Assists in various maintenance duties that include equipment, buildings, grounds, etc.
• May command other firefighters and equipment
• Participates in demonstrations, training and education related to the job
• Performs administrative and educational duties as assigned
• While wearing full firefighter protective clothing and equipment, including self-contained breathing apparatus, climbs ladders, drags/pulls/advances fire hose, performs search and rescue operations, directs large volume of water and/or chemicals onto burning buildings through nozzles and fire hose
• May be required to wear special protective personal equipment when dealing with blood-borne pathogens
• Licensed as an Emergency Medical Technician Specialist by the Michigan Department of Health, fire fighters administer emergency medical care under protocols established by the Wayne County Medical Control Board
• Performs emergency medical procedures such as CPR, intubation, defibrillation, administration of I.V. fluids, insertions of oral and nasal airways, blood pressure measurement, control of hemorrhage, triage, and stabilization of open and closed fractures
• Conducts pre-fire surveys related to buildings, water supply, special hazards, fire protection systems, etc. 
• Performs additional related duties as assigned 

Environmental Conditions and Equipment Used

• Conditions or situations include exposure to a risk of danger to life, health or bodily injury 
• Works in both indoor and outdoor environments
• Includes environments that may include contamination with poisonous gases, exposure to very high temperatures and very cold temperatures
• Includes contact with water, explosives, blood-borne pathogens, toxic chemical/biological agents, other liquids and humidity
• Noise/vibration exposure that could be enough to cause distraction, hearing loss and bodily harm
• Uses a variety of manual and power tools/equipment, including those to create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, lifesaving equipment and those related to duties of the position

Minimum Training, License, Education and Experience

• Must be the minimum age of 18, have earned a High School Diploma or equivalent and more than one year of college
• Fire Academy certification from Conference of Western Wayne’s Firefighter testing program (includes Written and Physical Agility Test) or equivalent with a current physical agility certification
• Possession of a valid, non-restricted MI driver’s license with no prior drinking and driving offense within the past seven years
• Possession of a valid State of Michigan Paramedic License
• Must complete continuing education classes and re-certify as needed, following state re-certification rules  

Specifications (Skills, Mental and Physical)

• Must have the ability to apply principles of rational systems to solve problems and interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagrammatic, or schedule form
• Must be able to read at a level to understand procedures and methods related to the job, as well as communicate effectively both verbally and in writing
• Must have math ability that includes algebra skills and interpretation of graphs
• Must be able to complete heavy work that includes exerting an excess of 100 pounds of force occasionally, 50 pounds of force frequently and/or excess of 20 pounds of force occasionally to move objects
• Must be able to complete work duties that require an ability to climb, balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, reach, stand, walk, push, pull, lift, grasp and includes repetitive motions
• Must have hearing to perceive information at normal spoken word levels and receive detailed information through oral communication and/or make fine distinctions in sound
• Must have visual acuity for color perception; depth perception, night vision, peripheral vision, determining accuracy and thoroughness of work and observation of general surroundings and activities 

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed, not construed as an exhaustive list of all duties that could be performed by a person in this classification. 

 ACT 78 CIVIL SERVICE PROCESS:

• Must pass Civil Service written examination administered by Dearborn Heights or EMPCO written examination with a score of 70% or higher
• Must pass an Oral Interview with a score of 70% of higher.
• Must pass background check.
• Must pass post-offer psychological examination and physical examination with a drug/alcohol screening.

To schedule complete a profile and take the EMPCO test for these position, go to https://www.empco.net/testing/ and follow the instructions. There is a fee to take the examination, but results of this one test will be accepted by all participating fire departments in Michigan.