(This story was originally published on 6 February 2017 and has been republished on the occasion of National Fire Service Day.)
The Delhi Fire Service attended 27,000 calls during the financial year 2015-16. The nearest fire station has to respond within a minute after receiving a call during the day and within two minutes during the night. The duration of a fireman’s duty is 24 hours straight, every alternate day. While on-duty, firemen have to respond to every call they receive round the clock, no matter how many they do.
During the 24 hours of their duty, they reside in the barracks of their fire station. Their job is as much training as it is presence of mind. Unaware of the surroundings, they enter a place to combat fires and save lives. “Death is certain, but we have nothing to fear. We are fireproof,” says Jagbir Singh, Station Office, Sarita Vihar, Delhi.
Even though this job takes a toll on the personal lives of fire fighters’, as well as their emotional psyche, they continue with their job without any fear. Their spirit is a force to reckon with and their teamwork is as inspiring as it is educational.
This Quint Lens’ photo essay by documentary photographer Sameer Khan is an attempt to document their lives and ways of being firemen of the DFS as they wait, fight, risk and then, do it all over again.
(Quint Lens is a selection of the most vivid imagery created by our in-house pool of talent, and from across the web, created and curated with an eye on for that Quintessential twist. In this section, you can find some of the most refreshing camera and mobile photography documenting current news events, the history and everyday culture of India and the world, heartbreaking stories that can only be conveyed through pictures, celebrations and revolutions; basically, anything that simply needs to be CliQed!)
(This was first published on 6 February 2017 and has been reposted from The Quint’s archives to mark International Firefighters' Day)
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