Sydney firefighter Chris Stathis reflects on career of helping people and saving lives

·

NSW Fire and Rescue Station Officer Chris Stathis has been putting out fires and saving lives since his early 20’s in Sydney, Australia. 

In an interview with The Greek Herald, the Greek Australian firefighter revealed how his journey began.

“I had a neighbour who was a firefighter, who told me all about the fire department and that I should look into becoming a firefighter if I wanted to,” Chris said.

“He took me to the fire station and showed me around. I also had a friend at school who was a few years older than me that had been to the fire station, and he showed me around the fire station as well and that’s how I got interested.”

Applying to the fire department

Chris first applied to the fire department in 1990, where he was required to do different types of tests, spanning across three years. They included both physical and mental tests, followed by many interviews.

“When we passed the exam, we then started training for 16 weeks,” he explained.

“When we passed the training, we were then each assigned to a fire station. I went to a fire station in early 1994 at the age of 23.”

In 2018, Chris was also part of the NSW Fire and Rescue team who was deployed to Greece to assist with recovery efforts following the wildfires. He was there for 15 days to help communities, alongside local fire authorities and other agencies. 

The pros and cons of the job

As someone who’s been working for NSW Fire and Rescue for more than 20 years, Chris explained that there are both positives and negatives to doing what he loves each day.

“Some of the advantages of this job are that every day is different, and you don’t know what’s going to happen when you come to work. Another advantage is working with a team and having that camaraderie,” he said.

“The downsides are when you see people getting hurt or killed and working in shifts.”

Despite this, the 51-year-old said he loves “being able to help people during their crisis and knowing that I have saved lives and their most precious possessions.”

He also addressed the misconception that firefighters only rescue people, stating they do much more than what most people think.

“People think we only go to fires, but we do rescues, car accidents, storm damage, chemical spills and hazardous materials,” he said.

“We also help educate people about the dangers around their homes, we teach children in schools about the dangers of fires, and we are also very involved within the community.”

For more information on how to stay fire safe, visit your local RFS website.

greek film festival melbourne

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Ioannis Loverdos welcomed to Perth by WA Governor

Greek Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ioannis Loverdos was welcomed to Government House in Perth by WA Governor Chris Dawson.

‘Keystone criminal’ Aristides Avlonitis jailed over botched WA cocaine plot

Aristides Avlonitis has been sentenced to over nine years in prison for his role in an attempt to import over 229 kgs of cocaine into WA.

Greek Parliament passes ban on protests at Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Greece’s Parliament on Wednesday approved a contentious amendment banning demonstrations in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

From Athens to Adelaide: Hellenic bonds strengthened at dinner for Loverdos

South Australia’s Greek community gathered at the Mortlock Chamber to honour visiting Deputy Minister Ioannis Loverdos.

Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney pays tribute to women of courage and resistance

The Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney hosted a deeply moving and meticulously researched presentation titled Greek Heroines of WWII.

You May Also Like

Never-before-seen Minoan artefacts go on display in the UK

Over 100 Minoan artifacts have been revealed in the Labyrinth – Knossos, Myth and Reality exhibition the Oxford's Ashmolean Museum in the UK.

Multi-million dollar penalties for confidentiality breaches introduced to NSW Parliament

The Minns Labor Government will today introduce to Parliament the Revenue, Fines and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023.

Tsitsipas, Nadal to clash in Australian Open quarter-final as Berrettini succumbs to injury

Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open quarter-final in a bid to reach his second Australian Open semi-final.