STUART, Fla. — The busy beach season has begun and our local first responder crews are looking to add some more hands on deck.
Martin County Fire Rescue is currently seeking help in their dispatch and ocean rescue departments.
Division Chief David Hays recognizes the importance of having these critical roles filled for the community.
"When people call 911, they want to make sure there's going to be somebody that answers that phone," Hays said. "It's our obligation to provide that to the community."
Up to 40,000 calls are made annually to the Martin County dispatch center and up to 50 rescues were made from the ocean team last year.
"Right now, what we saw was there is a need to for the daily operation due to the mandation of overtime and we want to avoid any level of burnout," Hays said.
With 22 miles of coastline in Martin County, only about a mile is life guarded. Martin County Ocean Rescue Chief Ian Montgelas stresses the importance of public safety.
"It's incredibly important that anybody that visits our beaches stay safe at all times," Montgelas said. "They need to come to one of our lifeguard beaches, that's Jensen Beach, Stuart Beach, Bathtub Beach or Hobe Sound Beach."
Both of these departments have had numerous applicants but they are still looking for more people to apply.
"Ideally, if I can find someone that wants to do this for their whole career, that's the goal," Montgelas said. "It's just difficult to find those individuals, but we're trying to find them."
The deadline to apply for the dispatch department is Feb. 14.
The deadline to apply for the ocean rescue team is March 2.
