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OTTUMWA, IOWA -- For six months, Cory Dillon has been a member of the Ottumwa Fire Department; a job that is more of a passion.

Dillon is one of the newest members of the department. He holds two firefighting degrees and one degree as a paramedic specialist.

"I like how it is a different job everyday. No two days are exactly the same. A little bit of a different routine everyday," said Dillon.

From making sure all of the equipment is working properly, to training everyday, to answering calls at all hours; being a firefighter is not an easy job.

"We work all the way throughout the day. Not only are we working and training and taking classes, but in the mean time, the alarm is going off for calls. You get interrupted with your classes, with your lunch, with any training. So you always have to be ready at any moment in anything that you are doing," said Dillon.

For 24 hours, KTVO spent time with crew two of the Ottumwa Fire Department. The crew responded to three medical calls and one accident during the course of the shift. And as KTVO learned, in this line of work, you always have to expect the unexpected. 

"If it is a medical call, more the medical side, we start to think about what could be wrong with the patient. What might they need from us? What I can do for them? When it comes to a house fire or a car accident, it is more thinking about where am I going to hook up for a hydrant, or where are we going to get our resources at," said Dillon.

Dillon shared with KTVO one of the hardest aspects about being a firefighter in Ottumwa.

"All of the calls are a little bit different; the tougher ones to go on are the ones dealing with kids. Little kids that aren't doing well, or they need or help. Whether it be they are just kind of sick or they are extremely sick, or the ones where someone has passed, it affects everyone a little differently and it is never that easy to see; especially with children," said Dillon.

Rest assured, the members of the Ottumwa Fire Department are well trained, educated and will always respond when called upon.