On board its firefighting patrol boat, the Civil Protection Department's Marine Unit waits for the call, waits for the coordinates of the boat on fire that has to be extinguished or the person in distress whose life has to be saved.

Following a mug of warm coffee and a cigarette and the signature song of Thomas the Tank Engine in the background, the four firefighters check the equipment before boarding. The gangplank leading to the dock is hauled aboard and the patrol boat leaves port.

"Donato dal Governo Italiano per mezzo del Protocollo Finanziario Italo-Maltese," reads an inscription on brass in the kitchen. One of the firefighters has slipped a religious pamphlet in between the brass and the fireproof wall.

The Giuseppe Garibaldi houses a bathroom, two showers, a room to store rescue equipment, a room to store useful tools, a room to store firefighting equipment and two dormitories. All rooms are connected to an intercom and two generators in the engine room.

The heat in the engine room is stifling and in a quick tour around the area, Leading Assistance and Rescue Officer Mark Zammit explains that the patrol boat operates on two bi-turbo engines, each reaching a maximum of 1,200 horsepower. He smiles, pats the engine and continues down the passage. Enough said.

Two other engines pump water at a staggering 600,000 litres an hour. These are identical to the ones that propel the two armed forces' fast search and rescue launches and are sometimes used to fill fire engines and ground monitors, continues Mr Zammit.

The crew of four is composed of two leading assistance and rescue officers and two assistance and rescue officers. The first two are responsible for navigation and coordination while the second are responsible for the mechanical and technical features.

And since the department is short of firefighters, all four are responsible for maintaining the patrol boat apart from assisting people in distress and fighting fires. A total of eight full-time firefighters man the patrol boat, split into two shifts.

Sailing along the northern coast of the island, the patrol boat was anchored outside Armier, between Mellieħa and Ċirkewwa. Mr Zammit explained that people will be gathering at the beach following their village feast. "It's a hotspot for accidents."

It was a quiet morning and the men gathered in the kitchen and made themselves a mug of coffee. Those who smoke satisfied the addiction. One proceeded to read an old newspaper while the remaining three watched the news on national television.

Following the sports bulletin, one announced that he was going for a swim while the others continued to watch the television, commenting on an old soap opera being aired. Comment became discussion: Their personal lives and their job. On busier days, these men have fought countless fires and assisted a number of people in distress. Mr Zammit recounted the time he pulled aboard a pilot whose plane had crashed. "His face was shredded, I couldn't give him mouth to mouth respiration and he later died in hospital."

But the afternoon didn't bring emergencies with it and the men went ashore to purchase refreshments and retired to the dormitories in shifts of two. As sunset approached it remained quiet and the cameraman was nudged awake as the patrol boat returned to port.

If not for journalists, for firefighters an uneventful day is a day to be thankful for.

kbugeja@timesofmalta.com