Behind the sirens, firefighters are ordinary people with an extraordinary passion for saving lives.
Meet Captain Grace Liew, a Hazardous Materials Specialist, as she shares her journey to a 7-year career with the Singapore Civil Defence Force through the Fire and Rescue scheme.
For her, the SCDF saying rings true: Lifesaving. It’s life changing.
Find out more at: go.gov.sg/scdf-join-us-today
This post is in partnership with the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
00:00In 2019, I responded to a toxic industrial chemical fire and that was personally one of the largest fire I have experienced.
00:13I have to remain calm, composed and alert. These are qualities that are necessary for my line of work.
00:22Hello everybody, I'm Captain Grace Liu from the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
00:27I am currently with the force for around 7 years.
00:30In hazmat department, we respond to various kinds of hazardous material incidents such as chemical fires or chemical leaks.
00:37In 2018, I applied for a midterm scholarship with MHA and during the panel interview, I was asked would I consider taking it with SEBA and I thought, why not?
00:47And due to my background in chemistry during my university days, I thought that it would be a good career progression and the rest was history.
00:57After completing 7 months of Rotar Commander course, I was posted to Tuas Fire Station.
01:03And in 2019, I responded to a toxic industrial chemical fire which was around the size of a football field.
01:09And that was personally one of the largest fire I have experienced at that point in time.
01:14I have to remain calm, composed and alert. And through this experience, I learned that these are qualities that are necessary for my line of work.
01:22The fast-paced nature of my job make quiet weekends essential for work-life harmony.
01:32So I find solace in making tea which allows me to reflect over the week and this helps me to improve and progress.
01:40The importance of work-life harmony came even more apparent to me when I encountered a fatal accident during my station days.
01:50And the victim was around the age of my father at that point in time.
01:53And this made me realise that it's very critical to spend more time with family as life is really very fragile.
02:00Through this experience, I learned that saving life is my passion. It's really rewarding and life-changing.
02:09Frankly speaking, I never thought that I would be a firefighter due to my petite size.
02:15But I learned that although we could not be physically as strong as a man, we can be mentally as strong as them.
02:21There are actually many female officers in the force. It's a fair number as compared to what many people may think.
02:28I have female bosses who have shown me what is it to be like a woman of strength.
02:33And I do hope to present these values and qualities to the next generation in hope that this next generation would also model to the next generation and beyond.
02:43I understand that everyone has fears. You may think that a fire is scary, but my fear is actually cockroaches.
02:52My point is that everyone has their fears and if you are afraid of anything that comes with this line of work,
02:58I would think that you are missing out on something meaningful and impactful.
03:02And if you are hesitating because of any fear or concern, I suggest that you join us at our open house at various fire stations every Saturday.
03:11Or you may browse our SCDF Career E booklet.
03:21Being a firefighter for years, we could share with you all day and night about the fires we fought, the rescue and missions that we had.
03:29Behind the sirens, we are all humans. And if you have the passion for life saving, I implore you to join us for a meaningful career ahead.
03:43This time...
03:47For treatment generations.
03:49In your description...
03:51Than we here...
03:55Every single coup...
03:56やって long after comparing the nominees of the future.
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