The West I-10 Fire Department is looking to sign up a few new volunteer firefighters to staff its five stations located throughout the Katy area, the department's leadership said.

"We always try and make sure that we're over and above what is going to be typically necessary to cover the area," Captain Fred Chambers said.

West I-10's volunteer force experiences regular attrition, he said. Some volunteers choose to resign for personal reasons, while others use volunteer fire-fighting experience to move into paid positions.

Knowing their volunteer force is always in flux, the West I-10 fire department tries to keep its numbers well above the minimum amount needed to cover its service area, so such personnel losses won't affect their ability to respond emergencies, Chambers said.

"There has been no decrease in services provided to our response area," Chambers said.

The firefighters at the West I-10 fire department are a mixture of volunteers and paid-part time employees. They serve a coverage area of 45 square-miles, occupied by more than 125,000 residents.

At the same time, the department is in the process of changing the way it assigns its volunteer force. Currently, volunteers are placed at the station nearest to their residence. They can respond to a call from their home or work. The department would like to transition towards having volunteers stay at the station for a 10–12 hour shift and respond to calls from there.

"We're trying to move from placing people where they live to putting them where they're needed," Chambers said.

Would-be volunteers must be 18 years of age or over and preferably posses a high-school diploma or GED. They must be able to provide some form of government-issued identification and pass a background and drug test.

There are two tracks to become a volunteer firefighter with the West I-10 fire department, Chambers said. Experienced fire-fighters, who have already completed formal training and obtained certification can take a fast-track course that focuses on acquainting the volunteer with the West I-10 department and assessing their skill-level. Volunteers who have no experience with a fire department take a longer course that trains them from the ground up.

For more information, visit www.westi-10fd.org.