THEY are known for putting out fires, rescuing people from burning buildings and cutting free people from mangled vehicles.
However a call that firefighters at the National Fire Authority's Nausori station received on Tuesday night meant it would be a first-time experience for them.
It was a call from the Nausori Police Station at 9:21pm to check out a snake curled around branches on a tree near a house on Willow Rd in Nakasi.
The NFA said in a statement the police informed firefighters of a call from residents of a snake in a lemon tree near their home. On arrival, the firefighters found a snake in the branches.
The statement from the fire authority said the fire rescue crew hitched their ladder, caught the snake and took it to the Koronivia Research Station.
"This is the first time that NFA firefighters have rescued a snake," the statement said. It also is the first time the trained firefighters have been called out to rescue any animals.