A Falmouth-based retained firefighter has retired after serving the community for 38 years, and says he is looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Katrina.

Alex Cocks, 60, first joined the fire service in 1979, and over his career has battled some of the biggest blazes all over the area. He was on the scene at the Falmouth Beach Hotel, the rag factory in Brown’s Hill, the former Gondolier restaurant in Longdowns and the devastating house boat explosion in Penryn.

But now Alex has officially retired, and celebrated his retirement at the same time as his 60th birthday at a party on Friday.

Alex happily admits that although he has thoroughly enjoyed his time in the service, it has been a strain on his family.

The Cocks clan could never travel far from the station, as in the beginning of Alex’s career he would be alerted to fires via a bell in his house, or through a siren that would sound in Penryn. This meant that they could never be out of hearing distance of the alarm system and Alex's two children Benjamin, 28 and Stephanie, 26, grew up with a father who could dash out the door at any second.

Alex said: “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it, but I think 60 is about old enough really. The service has changed a lot since I first joined, so I think it’s time I take it easy for a while.

“I joined by pure coincidence really. After I came home from the Army I played some rugby with some friends who were in the brigade, and they told me they were short at the station. They asked me if I wanted to try it, and I started the following week.

“It’s just been really enjoyable the whole time. Working with a great bunch of blokes makes you enjoy it, and you’re going out to help people and that’s very rewarding.

“I’ve worked on all the major fires that’s been in the area. The rag factory was one of my first jobs, and I was also at the fire in Boscastle, the Falmouth Beach Hotel, and the Pandora one. One that stands out would be the boathouse that blew up on Commercial Road in Penryn. That was quite devastating, it was like a demolition site. All the windows from local businesses were broken and there were bits of boat on the road. We found one girl dazed and confused, but her parents had died. It was very sad, but that’s part of the job."

He added: "I enjoy it so it’s not a sacrifice, but it is for my family. We even had a shout out when we were getting married. My children grew up with it because that’s what I did when they were young, they never knew any different.

“But I don’t regret it, even more so because you’re helping local people. That’s all part and parcel of being in the brigade.

“I don’t know about retirement, I think I’ll miss the job a lot more than I think I’ll miss it. But I’ll get to spend more time with my family. I’ll go camping more, see the wife more.”