Athens firefighter Jordan Pugh shows children from The Little Red Schoolhouse in Athens how to work a fire hose during a recent field trip to the Athens Fire & Rescue station on Washington Street. Kids considering a career as a firefighter should consider some states, including Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Florida, are facing firefighter shortages. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 321,570 people who list their occupation as firefighter. The mean hourly wage is $25.60 and mean annual salary is $53,240, according to figures released last year.

Athens firefighter Jordan Pugh shows children from The Little Red Schoolhouse in Athens how to work a fire hose during a recent field trip to the Athens Fire & Rescue station on Washington Street. Kids considering a career as a firefighter should consider some states, including Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Florida, are facing firefighter shortages. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently 321,570 people who list their occupation as firefighter. The mean hourly wage is $25.60 and mean annual salary is $53,240, according to figures released last year.