SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Adam Chartrand is all smiles when he talks about his time with the Yellowknife Fire Division.

Adam Chartrand started off his career with the Yellowknife Fire Division as a paid-on-call firefighter, making the leap to a full-time firefighter after only two years. - Daniel Campbell/NNSL photo

The 28-year-old moved to Yellowknife in 2000 and began working in the restaurant business, but his interests soon turned to firefighting.

After noticing an ad in the newspaper advertising paid-on-call firefighter positions at the local fire hall in 2010, Chartrand said he "just flew with it" and joined up.

"This is just such a good community and I wanted to give back."

Chartrand spent two years as a paid-on-call -- or volunteer -- firefighter with the division, soaking in weekends and weeknights of training to get his qualifications.

Mike Hoffman, deputy fire chief with the division, said time spent as a paid-on-call firefighter is well-spent for those who are interested in fighting fires as a career.

"If they want to train, they can train for free," Hoffman said. "We offer $15,000 to $20,000 worth of training."

New paid-on-call recruits spend five consecutive weekends -- or ten days -- getting the "bare-minimum" standard for training, Hoffman explains. This earns them a yellow helmet and a pager, allowing them to be called out to fires, but not to dangerous situations such as entering burning buildings.

The following 12 months, working two five-hour shifts per month and attending three-hour training sessions on Wednesday nights, earns them a black helmet, Hoffman said. The black helmet symbolizes a firefighter with all the basic requirements.

The life of a paid-on-call can be a busy one, but Chartrand said it's worth it.

"It's a huge time commitment, but you're not sacrificing time when you're enjoying yourself."

The simulated training exercises, along with a fleet of "toys," including snowmobiles, ambulances, fire engines and a boat, provide enough stimulation for full-timers and part-timers alike.

"It was the best part-time job you could ask for," Chartrand said.

But the paid-on-call life wasn't enough for Chartrand. He decided to make the jump to a full-time firefighter a year and a half ago, something Hoffman says is fairly common.

"I could go down to the floor and find multiple examples," Hoffman says of staff firefighters at the station who started as part-timers.

"Just come in and do what Adam did."

Now working full-time, Chartrand says he helps mentor new faces in the paid-on-call program, who might be nervous about their commitment to a sometimes-chaotic occupation.

In his few years at the station, Chartrand has experienced a number of stressful and upsetting emergencies.

"When you first join, you always remember your first few calls."

Chartrand is guarded speaking about the more serious times, but says he was always confident going into dangerous situations.

"The training you get here is top notch," Chartrand said.

"Some people aren't sure if they can deal with stressful situations. You can impress yourself."

Chartrand says he's still close with the friends he met as a paid-on-call four years ago. "It's a really tight-knit organization," he said

"You rely on the guy on your right and left."

As for the paid-on-call firefighters, Chartrand said they're just as important.

"We count on them to have our backs. They're part of our team."

Hoffman said he encourages a family environment at the station between firefighters -- right down to the ribbing you'd see between siblings.

"It's like a family. It has to be like that or guys are going to get hurt or killed."

The value of the paid-on-call firefighters in the division's family, Hoffman says, is simple mathematics.

"We have six people at any given time available. Last year we had 3,700 calls."

As would be appropriate this time of year in Canada, Hoffman uses a hockey analogy to explain the significance of paid-on-call volunteers.

"We need depth. For us to be a winning team we have to have a full bench."

The division is holding an open house April 9 at the fire hall for anyone interested in becoming a paid-on-call volunteer.