Feb 2, 2009 11:05 pm US/Eastern
Dozens Turned Away From Firefighter Positions
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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More than 200 people waited in line outside the Miami Fire Rescue department's headquarters to start the application process.
CBS
Dozens of people who had hoped to work for Miami Fire Rescue were turned away Monday evening after they waited for hours, sometimes in the rain. Miami City Officials said from the start they would stop taking applications after the 750th qualified applicant showed up, but many of the people who were towards the end of the line didn't take it well when they were told they couldn't even turn in their paperwork.
Alfredo Santos says many people cut in line. "We got skipped by people who were there for 20 minutes and (Miami) P.D. was just standing around oblivious to what's going on, they weren't even helping us."
As the doors opened, the long wait just for a chance to hand in their application was finally over. Filing inside the administration building for the City of Miami in groups of 20, more than a thousand people spent not just hours but days in line when news that the City of Miami was accepting applications for firefighter-paramedic positions.
Armando Soutullo told CBS4's Liv Davalos that he's been camped out since Saturday.
"I was hoping to come today, Monday, but my friends called me and told me people were already waiting in line I just came. I'm 71st in line," said Soutullo.
Hundreds of tents were set up on the grassy area of the Miami Riverside Center at 444 Southwest 2nd Avenue. People making their weekend wait as comfortable as possible with sleeping bags and blankets.
With the unemployment rate in South Florida the highest it's been in 16 years many here looking for a job, or simply to get a better career, saw this moment as one they could not pass up.
Malcolm Davis is a self-employed barber but says the career of a firefighter is one he could bank his future on. "I just feel this is a better job, better opportunity a better life, and when you see something like this just grab it," said Davis.
Luis Vallejos works as a mechanic and said the bleak economy made him rethink his career choice. "I never thought of this as a career but with the economy the way it is, being a firefighter is more stable," said Vallejos.
The City will only accept 750 applications for 35 firefighter/paramedic positions. By 6:00 Monday evening, the City had taken in more than 410 applications from qualified applicants. Qualified applicants have all the documents necessary, can prove that they are Miami-Dade residents, and do not smoke.
This is the first time officials say they have seen this many applicants show up and the first time they have had anyone camp out. City of Miami Police officers helped set up the barricades to keep the lines orderly.
Hector Mirabile with the City's Human Resource Office said they were taken by surprise by the number of people in line. "Usually when we are accepting application we get about two hundred people but this really took us by surprise."
Many in line, like Eric Perez who works for ambulance companies, are certified paramedics. The 21 year old has been trying to get a job with the City of Miami and hopes his dream of being a firefighter will come true. "As a kid, as an eagle scout, they did a lot of cool stuff. They help people and work in medicine and I want to do that," said Perez.
Those chosen will find out in 3 to 5 months when they will be invited to attend the Fire Academy.
CBS4 Reporter Natalia Zea contributed to this story.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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