If you think that being a volunteer in two Home Team departments is impossible, then one Civil Defence Auxiliary Unit (CDAU) officer has made the impossible possible.
Meet SGT1 (V) Leow Yong Tai, 37, an auxiliary firefighter with the SCDF and a Police volunteer special constabulary (VSC)[1] , who works full-time as a Human Resource professional in a Multi-National Corporation (MNC).
Rescue 995 speaks to SGT1 Leow Yong Tai to find out more about his experience as a volunteer for CDAU and VSC.
R995 Editor: Yong Tai, tell us what motivated you to join SCDF as a CDAU firefighter.
Yong Tai: When I was younger, I watched a drama series about firefighters and that sparked my curiosity about firefighting. My interest in firefighting gradually grew to a point where I yearned so much to become a firefighter. That motivated me to join the CDAU as a firefighter in 2015. At that time, there was an opening for interested applicants without firefighting experience, and so, I grabbed it by the horns and signed up for it.
R995 Editor: Since you are so passionate about firefighting, have you ever considered signing up as a career firefighter with the SCDF?
Yong Tai: Yes, I had on numerous occasions. However, I also have a deep interest in Human Resource (HR) and had since decided to pursue HR as my career for now while maintaining my passion for firefighting as an active volunteer with SCDF.
R995 Editor: I see. You told me that you not only volunteer as a CDAU firefighter but also as a VSC officer. How do you manage your time volunteering in both Home Team departments and yet working full-time for five days a week as a HR professional?
Yong Tai: I have been a CDAU officer for three years now and have been committing two shifts (of 24 hours each) every month at the fire station. My shifts at SCDF are mostly on Saturdays. On the remaining Saturdays, I would volunteer at the VSC, and so far, I enjoy what I do.
R995 Editor: How supportive is your family with regards to your spirit of volunteerism?
Yong Tai: My wife is highly supportive of me being a volunteer at CDAU and VSC. But if my wife and I were to have children, I would consider volunteering only one shift per month for either CDAU or VSC, so that I can better manage my family time.
R995 Editor: With such a very supportive wife, I am sure things have been manageable for you so far as a volunteer, right?
Yong Tai: Yes, all is manageable for me. In fact, being a volunteer in both SCDF and SPF gives me the chance to have more exposure and to get a much broader view of how the two Home Team departments operate and work together to keep Singapore safe and secure.
R995 Editor: That is indeed an interesting perspective! Let’s hear more about your experience as a volunteer firefighter. There was an operation which I recalled you were involved in and I believe it was regarding the ammonia gas leak incident in January 2018. Can you please share with us what happened?
Yong Tai: That is right. It was on 26 January last year when an ammonia leak incident occurred at a warehouse in Jurong that housed and distributed food products. It was a rather major incident in which the whole operations lasted for two days and about one hundred workers had to be evacuated to safety. I remembered vividly that I was involved on the second day of the operations, which was a Sunday. I reported for duty that morning thinking that the day was going to be another routine shift duty for me at the fire station, until my unit was activated at about 11am to respond to the ammonia leak incident. We were to assist the firefighters who were already there earlier and were told to deploy ventilation fans to diffuse the ammonia gas in the warehouse. For this, some of the crew had to don the fully encapsulated HazMat Protective Suit including breathing through the Breathing Apparatus (BA) set. We also had to decontaminate the interior of the warehouse that was polluted with ammonia.
R995 Editor: Out of curiosity, how dangerous can the ammonia be?
Yong Tai: Ammonia in very high concentration could lead to breathing difficulty or choking effect and even cause severe skin irritation. As for this particular gas leak incident in Jurong, the ammonia concentration was so high that many workers had to be evacuated and the warehouse had to be shut down for days to allow for a thorough decontamination process.
R995 Editor: How long were you involved in the entire operations?
Yong Tai: For me, it was a prolonged, almost 12-hour operations. We were activated at 11am and the stand down order was given at about 10.30pm. Despite having a few short rests in between, by the end of the day, I was very exhausted, both physically and mentally.
R995 Editor: I really take my hat off to you for being such a dedicated volunteer and staying committed to your calling. What are some of the most fulfilling or useful things that you have learned as a volunteer firefighter?
Yong Tai: In fact, the rigours of volunteers’ training is similar to the SCDF career officers and National Servicemen but due to our full-time work commitments, some curriculums had been shortened for us. I have acquired a lot of lifesaving knowledge and skills. It is very fulfilling to learn and apply these lifesaving skills, and not to mention being exposed to an arsenal of sophisticated rescue equipment and huge fire emergency vehicles. During the vigorous physical training, it allowed me to be slimmer and shed off a few kilograms! (laughs)
R995 Editor: What were the more memorable moments for you being a volunteer firefighter?
Yong Tai: I responded to not one but two separate incidents where a body was found in each incident at the Pandan Canal. For the first incident, I was a Police VSC who was responding to the incident with SCDF officers. As for the second incident, I was a CDAU firefighter who worked with my SCDF colleagues to retrieve a floating body from the canal so that the police could conduct their investigation. Thus far, I had the opportunity to observe and experience how SCDF and SPF worked together during operations like these.
There were also times when I bumped into some of my Police VSC colleagues who saw me in my CDAU uniform, and some of them would ask me if I am an SCDF career officer. When I told them that I am also a volunteer with SCDF, they would usually say, “Wah, you are so full of energy!”
R995 Editor: Thank you, Yong Tai, for sharing your experience with us and giving us a glimpse into the life of a CDAU volunteer firefighter. Before we conclude, could you share with us on what is expected of a CDAU volunteer with SCDF?
Yong Tai: Members of the public may generally think that firefighters only fight fires but in reality, they also respond to a wide variety of rescue incidents such as road traffic accidents and even hazardous materials incidents. As a volunteer in SCDF, one needs to have courage and the clarity of the mind to stay focused on the task as well as to have mental agility and physical resilience. These are vital prerequisites as during emergency incidents, you need to make decisions fast and be ever ready to execute commands given to you. Finally, to become an efficient SCDF volunteer in the CDAU, you need to expect the unexpected at any given incident and be ever ready to be nimble, to adapt and to embrace changes.
1 The Volunteer Special Constabulary (VSC) is a Home Team component that supports the Singapore Police Force (SPF) to prevent, deter, and detect crime through volunteerism; preserving Singapore’s security.
