We're on the FESTIVE SHIFT!

While many of us get to put our feet up at home, these very special women are on hand to take care of us when we need them most

‘THE CALL-OUTS DON’T STOP JUST BECAUSE IT’S CHRISTMAS’

Katy Garrigan, 43, has been a firefighter with the Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service for 14 years. She lives with her partner Rob and sons Rafferty, seven, and Rudy, five. I’m very proud to be a firefighter and lucky to have a job that I love. Being in an emergency service does mean shift work, though, and over the past 14 years, I’ve worked some of Christmas every year. We’re a family that loves Christmas, so it’s always hard, but call-outs don’t stop just because it’s Christmas.

A couple of years ago, we had a call around 1 am on 23 December to a big house fire. Thankfully, the family was away that night. The devastation they were faced with so close to Christmas was awful but the fact it could have been so much worse really hit home.

Last year, I worked until 7 pm on Christmas Eve, racing home after my shift to get back for that last bit of magic before bedtime – leaving milk out for Santa and carrots for his reindeer, and hanging up the stockings.

When I’ve had to work Christmas Day, we tend to just shift things along. I’ve definitely eaten a full turkey dinner with all the trimmings a day late some years.

One thing I can’t bear to miss out on is walking downstairs on Christmas morning with the boys and seeing all the presents under the tree.

When I last worked overnight on Christmas Eve, the boys weren’t allowed downstairs until I got home at around 7.30 am, as I just had to be there for that moment when their faces lit up.

At work, we make it as Christmassy as possible at the fire station, with a tree, decorations, and Christmas dinner.