Since 1998 New Zealand's population has grown from 3.8 million to 4.8 million yet the pool of professional firefighters has increased by just 68. New Zealand Professional Firefighters' Union president Ian Wright says staff are being stretched too thin by having to respond to a growing number of incidents. ROSS GIBLIN/STUFF The firefighters' union says a nearly static firefighting workforce is being stretched protecting a population that has grown by a million people over the last two decades and attending a greater range of incidents. Fire and Emergency (formerly the New Zealand Fire Service) annual reports show that in June 1998 the number of career firefighters was 1671. ROSA WOODS/STUFF New Zealand Professional Firefighters' Union president Ian Wright says the union wants to see more firefighters being recruited and a strategic approach to planning which examines the growth and needs specific regions.

Source: Stuff November 27, 2019 15:56 UTC