Kalgan Volunteer Bushfire Brigade vollie Josh Tomcsanyi graduates from DFES academy to be career firefighter

After almost a decade holding the hose as a volunteer, Albany man Joshua Tomcsanyi has officially made his “hobby” a career, graduating from the DFES academy to join the career firefighters this month. Mr Tomcsanyi first joined the Kalgan Volunteer Bushfire Brigade in 2018 when he heard volunteer resources had been depleted after a large fire in the region. “I wanted to help my community but didn’t have any training,” he said. “I had some spare time, so as soon as I could join up, I did.” Having grown a bit weary of his job as a prison officer and looking for a more community-focused vocation, the 33-year-old said his enjoyment as a volunteer led him to consider the Department of Fire and Emergency Services first. “I was really just looking for that sense of purpose in life and wanted something with a bit more community engagement,” Mr Tomcsanyi said. “For me, that purpose comes from helping people a bit more directly than what I could offer in prison. “I also felt the fireys are a better fit for my lifestyle as I like to look after myself physically, so I saw an opportunity to use my hobby to my advantage in the workforce as well.” Despite being set to work full-time at the Albany fire station, Mr Tomcsanyi will continue to volunteer with the Kalgan brigade, albeit with scaled-back hours. ”I can’t be as involved as I’d like to be, but I’ll still help when I can,” he said. “They both kind of complement each other, and plenty of skills I’ve learnt at the academy are transferable to the bushies. “As well as now having a better understanding of how fire works, there is so much that careers do that’s not included in the name; we do structure fires, road crash rescue, heavy crash incidents, hazmat rescue and urban search and rescue. “It’s also those generic skills like leadership, being part of a team, pressured tasks and getting more in-depth training on how fire behaves in general.” The Marbelup resident said he was “humbled” to be the only graduate out of his 48-strong class — the largest training group since 1970 — to be sent to the Albany fire station. “I selected Albany as my preferred placement but also put my name down in Kalgoorlie and Geraldton — I was prepared to move but DFES was happy to send me back,” he said. “Albany is home, I’ve lived here my whole life, and I can confidently say I can stay here doing what I love until I retire.”