Contrary to what one might imagine, not all firefighters have a heavy goods vehicle license to drive the famous pump van (FPTL) which responds to fires. At Sdis de Seine-Maritime, which has 79 emergency centers, including the Call Processing Center in Yvetot, and manages 4,000 agents, we are well placed to know this. Until now, only forty of them were successful in private driving schools per year. Not enough in any case to ensure continuity of service during guard duty and on-call duty. But, this Monday, January 13, SDIS76 opened at the Grand-Couronne rescue center, near Rouen, the only driving training center for firefighters in Normandy. So that ultimately, a third of the workforce will obtain the C1 license.
The challenges of creating this departmental driving school, validated by the Board of Directors in June 2023, are twofold: “First, train our staff as quickly and as best as possible, because as we are not in the profitability of private companies. Our formula allows us to promote training in emergency driving with specific templates, explains Lieutenant Sébastien Fillette, deputy departmental referent for driving and head of the driving school. And, he immediately adds, there is also the desire to reduce the potential accident rate during our interventions. We have priority, but as long as we do not put users and ourselves in danger. A useful truck is one that arrives safely.”
On the financial side, Lieutenant-Colonel Ronan Philip, head of the training and physical activities group, explains “that a heavy goods vehicle license in the private sector costs between 2,000 to 2,500 euros. There, 250,000 euros were invested with the creation of a regulated 100-meter track, the purchase of a scalable 19-ton truck and the hiring of Lara, a driving school instructor. Over twenty years, this represents a permit costing less than 1,000 euros per agent. In addition, for firefighters, it is the gateway to a specialty sector: they will be able to complete training courses to drive pumps, ladders, off-road vehicles or even specific machines. With this driving school, we will pass 84 licenses in 2025 during 21 two-week sessions.”
Monday January 13, two firefighters from the Grand-Quevilly rescue center and one from Havre Caucriauville, aged at least 21 and holders of a B license, returned to school for a fortnight's training: “Like a weight license heavy takes place in two parts, the first week prepares for the off-road exam on the track with maneuvers and theory. Success opens the doors to the second week where they will drive a lot in real traffic. In the end, firefighters will obtain a real C1 license with quality training,” continues Sébastien Fillette.
For the command, “it’s a real professional and social plus. A line on a CV, especially for our volunteers. It is a real opportunity for our agents that Sdis can train them for free and that they can use this license outside. However, explains Ronan Philip, there is a moral contract: there is no question of joining the driving sector and then leaving Sdis. There will be a detailed analysis of this real human investment.”
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