South Africa:International Firefighters' Day (2015)

"When I grow up, I want to be a firefighter"...

Words spoken by many young children who view firefighters as real-life action heroes... which they are.

To coincide with International Firefighters' Day, celebrated each year on 4 May, the South African Post Office issued a set of eight stamps reflecting some of the activities of firefighters.

Issue Description
International Firefighters' Day is a time when people worldwide recognise and honour the sacrifices made by firefighters to ensure that their communities and environments are safe.

The role of firefighters - our real-life action heroes - is to protect lives and property. No matter what country you live and work in, firefighters work together against one common enemy - fire. But firefighters are not only trained to put out fires; they are also trained as paramedics and rescuers; they assist during emergencies and local and national disasters such as floods, earthquakes, aeroplane crashes, terrorist attacks, and train derailments, as well as vehicle accidents, mountaineering and boating accidents, to name but a few.

Sometimes the dedication of firefighters to ensure the safety of others is in the form of countless hours of volunteered service over many years; in others it is many selfless years working in the industry. In all cases it risks the ultimate sacrifice of a firefighter's life.

Issue Details
The images reflect different aspects of firefighting and its subsections, as well as the history of firefighting in South Africa.

The various images featured on the stamps were chosen to be representative of all the services offered by firefighters.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Services of the the City of Ekurhuleni provided guidance in this regard, as well as in finding and providing photographs and ensuring that the firefighters' uniforms, vehicles and equipment were depicted in a factually correct way on the stamps.

A request was sent out nationally to various fire and emergency services to submit photographs showing relevant images. More than 100 photos were received and in cooperation with the South Africa Post Office and the City of Tshwane, the best quality pictures were identified and presented to the President of the South African Emergency Services Institute (SAESI) for final selection.

Stamps
The first image on the stamp sheet depicts a 1920 Dennis fire engine used in South Africa at the time, with a typical fire station from the time in the background, while the second stamp shows a typical modern-day fire engine and fire station in South Africa.

The rest of the stamps show modern firefighters in action. The images include a firefighter in a fire emergency situation, a mountain rescue, firemen carrying a patient on a stretcher, a vehicle accident rescue, rescuing a victim from drowning, and public information and education.

First Day Covers
The two First Day Covers show firemen putting out a fire with a hose and firemen rescuing a child from a burning house respectively.

References & Notes
References

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